If you do stuff, stuff gets done.......

If you do stuff, stuff gets done.......

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Chocolate Icebox pie

My mom made icebox pies often. She almost always made them in the 13x9 size. Hers were usually chocolate but she also made lemon. She used a crust on the bottom, pudding in the middle and then the top layer was Dream Whip or Cool Whip or whipped cream, whatever she had. Mom says she liked them because they were easy to make a day ahead. I remember we all liked to eat them.

I made icebox pie just about like my mom did. My hubby is not crazy about whipped topping so I leave that layer off the dessert. But I do keep a can of aerosol whipped cream in the fridge and it is easy to add to the top of my serving and anyone else who wants it.

Super Easy Crust
1 Cup Flour
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup chopped nuts like almonds, pecans or walnuts - nuts are optional
Just mix these ingredients and pat into the bottom of a pie pan.
If you are making a big 13x9 dessert, double the crust ingredients.
Bake at 350 for 15 minutes or until just lightly browned. cool

Chocolate pie filling - this makes enough for one round pie, if you want to make a big 13x9 then double everything.

3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup milk
3 egg yolks, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Directions
1.In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, flour, and cocoa powder. Mix well. While stirring, slowly pour in milk. Mix until smooth.
2.Cook cocoa mixture over medium heat, stirring almost constantly. Continue until mixture thickens, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat.
3.In a heat safe bowl, slowly pour about a cup of the hot chocolate mixture into the beaten egg yolks , whisking rapidly until yolks are incorporated.
Whisk chocolate egg mixture back into the saucepan. Bring back to a low simmer and simmer for about a minute, stirring often.
Stir in vanilla extract and butter or margarine. Pour filling into baked pie shell. Chill before serving. Store in icebox-refrigerator.

If you don't want to make the pie filling, you could use a Jello type mix. I think the from scratch pudding just tastes much better.


and if you don't want pie, then how about cake?
This is Nina and her little sister in law, Hannah. Hannah likes manatees and Nina has been baking her a fancy birthday cake every year. So this year's cake a very big manatee and it says "happy birthday Hannatee" Aren't they clever?

Kitchen closed......

my kitchen is sort of closed. I've pretty much stuck to the weekly plan, but see all these dishes in the fridge?
they contain leftovers from Sunday's roast beef, Monday's baked pasta, Tuesday's burgers and hot links and Weds. pizza.
So tonight, we had leftovers for supper and made a pretty big dent in them. I expect we will finish them off tomorrow and then it will be back to regular cooking.



And I have to confess that I did do just a little cooking today. When I organized the fridge space, I came across the 6 egg whites left from the chocolate icebox pie on Sunday. I did not want to let them spoil so I baked 1/2 a recipe of Angel Food Cake.
I will post the pie recipe soon.

Monday, July 26, 2010

What's been going on at my home

We went to a few yard sales on Saturday. Not much purchased though,
I did find these 8 napkins, white with black and red cherries- 50 cents for the set

and 2 packs of vintage rick rack - 10 cents. Can you read on the packages how much they originally sold for?

I cooked a big meal and as I prepared the dishes, I lined them up so I could keep everything straight. First I put the roast beef in the oven. Then I peeled the potatoes, got the carrots ready to bake, cut the fresh corn off the cob and put it in a pan to cook on the stove top, made bread dough and have it rising, made a marinated vegetable salad like I read about on Lyn's blog and made a chocolate icebox pie.
Once all that was done, I put the salad and pie in the fridge, then I took a shower!

close up of Lyn's salad

This book arrived in today's mail. I won in a giveaway at Kusine.com - a really neat blog about sewing, gardening, cooking - if you have time, go visit.

Now I just have to decide which project to sew first........

Friday, July 23, 2010

Misc. from this week

Cantalopes raised by one of Jeff's coworkers - the same man that gave us last weeks corn - I think I owe him a plate of cookies.

corn and tomatoes from my brother's garden.

a Pyrex bowl my parents found an estate sale

fresh baked pound cake

Jeff bought a crazy-big watermelon. We try to get one every year from a farmer from Rush Springs who sells them out of his pick up truck. It probably weighs close to 40lbs.


A bucket full of Gavin, now at 17 months, and less than a year ago in the same bucket. Boy babies turn into little boys very quick!

Baby Elizabeth is 7 weeks old. She is wearing a onesie with little wooden shoes on it. My friend Heidi in Holland sent it to her along with 3 others, the others have tulips and little tags of windmills.


I've been busy this week with fresh produce, cooking, company and sweet grandchildren.
How about you, what were you busy with this week?

Thrift store finds

This week is Krazy Daze in my town. Most of the businesses have good sales and clear out their old or slow moving merchandise.
Even the thrift stores were clearing out stuff. My parents are here and we went to 3 thrift stores.


2 yards of blue and white flannel $1
bias tape, rick rack, a dress pattern and covered button kits were 10 cents each.

at the first one, baskets and magazines were 10 cents each and buy 1 get 3 free. Krazy huh? I picked out an assortment of both.
At another thrift store, the old Taste of Homes were 5 cents each.

A pyrex 8 inch pie pan and Pyrex tea pot - $5 for both


and the bargain of the month
a very cute needlepoint pillow - just 50 cents!