Best Flavor Vegetable Soup

I really think it's got to be the sausage that gives this soup it's flavor. I've made vegetable soup different ways, but this one has had the best flavor.

1/2 to 1 pound mild ground sausage
1/2 lb lean hamburger
6-8 C hot water (enough to cover the raw vegetables)
5-6 bouillon cubes
1 onion
4 stalks celery
2 or so cups chopped carrots
8 or so cubed red potatoes
1 or 2 cans of corn
You can add other veggies you have on hand that you like such as cauliflower, green beans, peas, etc.
1 can tomato paste
seasonings you like - I've used things like garlic, basil, an all seasoning without salt, garlic salt or seasoning salt. (Not all of these at the same time though)

Saute the meat til it's very well browned. You want to get that nice browning that is going to give your liquid a lot of flavor.
Add chopped onions after meat is well browned and cook til soft.
Start adding your other chopped raw veggies, then cover with hot water. I do the water hot so it speeds up the cooking time. Add your bouillon cubes.
Let the veggies cook about 15 to 20 minutes til soft.
Mix your tomato paste with some hot water prior to adding it to your soup so it's easier to blend it in. Add your corn and any other veggies that are pre-cooked, such as frozen peas.
Add your seasonings any time you want. Mine usually go in last.

Dad's Favorite Oatmeal Cookie

AKA Traci's favorite and my favorite, too.  My mom has been making these cookies for my dad for years.

Double Batch
1 1/2 C shortening
2 C sugar
2 eggs
1/2 C water
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 C flour
6 C oatmeal
Optional:  chocolate chips, raisins.  (I like chocolate chips)

Cream shortening with sugars and eggs.  Add water and vanilla.  Add dry ingredients.  Add chocolate chips and/or raisins if desired.
Bake at 350º for 10-12 minutes.

Cindy's Fresh Garden Salsa

Cindy is one of my best friends.  She is an expert cook.  This is her salsa recipe.

Tomatoes
Onion (white or red)
Hot peppers
Garlic
Cilantro
Lime, or Lemon Juice
Salt

Directions:  Go to your taste.  :)

Yep, that's it.  Turns out excellent every time!

But for those who need to measure here are my guesses on her amounts:

6 cups tomatoes, diced finely
1/2 to 1 onion, diced finely
Hot peppers--no guesses here; that is totally up to how hot you want it.  Add slowly, like maybe 2 small jalapenos first and taste test.  Or any kind of hot or mild pepper will do.
Minced gloves of garlic - she said she added 5-6 to a very large bowl of salsa.  So maybe 2 cloves to this batch...or take a shortcut and used minced garlic in a jar.
Cilantro - she has a lot of green in it and I was surprised she doesn't use any green peppers, so I would say at least 1/2 cup to a whole cup, chopped finely.
Lime juice - other recipes say to use anywhere from teaspoons to tablespoons but I like the taste of the lime so I would use 4 tablespoons of lime juice.  Better yet, squeeze a fresh lemon or lime in there.
Salt - about a tsp or to taste

Homemade Greek Yogurt

**Update Dec 9, 2016 I'm still consistently making this yogurt with success. I use the simple method (as below instructions) of heat milk in microwave, cool, add about 1 TBS yogurt start, cover with plastic wrap, prehead oven 1 minute on 350º, wrap in towels, incubate overnight and up to 12 hours (I like going long for that extra yogurt taste), drain, eat. This yogurt stores for like a month in the fridge, maybe longer. I use yogurt for sour cream now for added nutrition from the probiotics. I have not had a batch fail in over 2 years.

*Updated on the 27th due to tips I found on girlsguidetobutter.com under fool proof yogurt.  It is way worth going to her website to see how she does it and there are so many other interesting things on there and I'm really excited to try the Russian Yogurt Pancakes.

I put half gallon of milk (whatever kind you want to use, I heard skim works and I've done whole but we always buy 2% so that's easier) in a glass bowl (I like using one with a handle).
Put in the microwave for 15 minutes on high. 
*I found this was heating it to above 200º which is probably no big deal except longer cooling time.  It only has to be heated to 185º.  (Microwaves vary.)  Or you could heat it slowly on the stove in a heavy bottomed pan, which I don't have, so I tried a regular pan on lower heat and it worked fine.

Take out and set on the counter...I place it on a cooling rack...and let it cool down to 100-115º.  People online say it only takes an hour, but for me it takes more like 2 hours and 20 minutes.
*It definitely takes less time to cool down heated to 185º so will get a more accurate time frame on this.  

I purchased a digital thermometer that has an alarm to go off at the right temperature only to find out it only reads up and not down...but it's still handy.

When it's the right temp you add about half a cup of plain yogurt.
**This is where I found I was in error when I tried making yogurt yesterday a different way.  I made a whole gallon and put the whole 6oz of Fage in.  According to girlsguidetobutter.com you should only add 2 TBS to a gallon.  She explains it on her web site and it makes perfect sense so that is probably why I had a failed batch.
So 1 TBS for half gallon.

I used plain Fage to start mine.
*girlsguidetobutter.com said it just needs to have the 2 main lactic bacterias which are pretty much in every yogurt.  

Once I had the first batch I use my own homemade yogurt for the start.  Whisk that in.
girlsguidetobutter.com said never stir in circular motion.  She said stir up and down or side to side.  This is a cheese making technique.

(If I remember I sit it out on the counter to get to room temp and if I don't I add some of the warm milk in and stir to get it warmed up).
*girlsguidetobutter.com said it doesn't have to be at room temp.  She takes half a cup of the warm milk and stirs the starter in, then adds to the pot of warm milk.

Turn your oven on to 350º degrees and set the time for ONE minute and then turn the oven OFF.
*girlsguidetobutter.com says it will incubate perfectly fine with only the oven light.  No need to turn the oven on at all.  If you have a gallon (in a pan with a lid on it) you don't need a towel.  If you have only half gallon or less wrap in a towel.
She also lists other ways to incubate but says this is the best and easiest way.

Turn on the oven light.  Put plastic wrap over the bowl.  Set it on a towel and place a towel over the top (I use kitchen towels) and place in the oven for 4-8 hours.  I usually just take it out around 4-5 hours.  I guess the longer it sits the more sour it gets...but this method works for me so I haven't tried longer.
*girlsguidetobutter.com said that 6 or more hours is best up to basically 12 hours but you can do up to 24 hours if you like it tarter.  She said the tartness comes after it cools down though, when the acid starts to work in the fridge.  Never go more than 24 hours or it will spoil.

You can strain the yogurt through a fine mesh or cheese cloth or whatever, but I love this Greek yogurt strainer--it's perfect!  I bought it on Amazon.
*girlsguidetobutter.com says don't use cheesecloth...too much will seep out.  Just use a linen dishtowel with a colander.  Very happy I have my yogurt strainer though.

I just dump the yogurt in, put on the lid, stick it in the fridge, and leave it til the next morning.  It reduces it down to 1 quart of yogurt and 1 quart of whey.  I keep 1 quart of whey in my fridge and rotate it.  You can use it in pancakes, waffles, any recipe that calls for buttermilk or whatever else.  Apparently Little Miss Muffet ate hers.

This yogurt is even good plain, but I've used coconut creamer (1 TBS) with flaked coconuts, canned crushed pineapple, blackberry jam, and strawberry jam so far.  I've only been making it for about a month but I love eating it twice a day...bigger serving that a measly 5 oz yogurt that you get 'on sale' for $1.  And there are no other additives!!  Just plain ole milk!

If you pay about $3 for a gallon of milk and use half, and get 1 quart of yogurt that is 37¢ for an 8 oz serving of yogurt!  Of course you have add ins but they don't add much cost!  :)
It also makes a yummy veggie dip.  I mix 3 or 4 Laughing Cow cheese wedges (or you could use cream cheese) and a spoonful of Best Foods mayonnaise with dried dill and a little garlic salt.  I've also made it with just the yogurt and it's good that way, too.  It's super yummy with Stacy's pita chips!  :)

*girlsguidetobutter.com said not to waste money on yogurt makers because you don't need them.  They don't make enough yogurt, take up too much space, and cost money you don't need to spend.  Using something that is functional for other things makes sense.  I really like this girl.  She is wise.

Failed Yogurt
I found girlsguidetobutter.com because I had a whole gallon worth of failed yogurt.  She said you can just reheat it to 110-115 and incubate it again. 

Mine failed for one of two reasons or both:
1 - used too much yogurt starter
2 - only incubated it 3 hours like the blogger said.

It can also fail if it's not kept at the right temp.  I tried it in an ice chest with water in it at 120º.  girlsguidetobutter.com says you only need to add jars of hot water to do that...much less mess I would say, and easier.

Ricotta
Another back up for failed yogurt is Ricotta, and that was SO EASY!  I just reheated the yogurt.  This was a quart that I had tried to strain for Greek yogurt and it was not straining.  The whey had little chunks in it and the yogurt was chunky and runny at the same time.  I put it in a pan on low heat til the whey completely separated from the 'cheese' (very quickly) and then drained it through a linen cloth in a colander.  That went super fast (15 or so minutes) and I got this:

 It was more than ready to be Ricotta!  It smelled good in the pan and it tasted good warm!  Will probably eat this plain once it's cooled.  It tastes almost like mild feta cheese.  YUM!

Cucumber Tomato Onion Salad

Cut up a cucumber or two, a tomato or two and however much sweet onion you like. Mix: 1/2 cup olive oil 1/4 cup Apple Cider vinegar 1 tsp salt 1 tsp sugar Whisk together and pour over vegetables. Toss to coat.

Blackberry Delight!

A friend at church told me about this idea.  I'm sure I had no idea when she said this was like having ice cream!  But it sounded good, and it is nutritious and fat free, so I tried it!  Oh my!  Oh yum!!

You take frozen berries and put them in a bowl.  Any berry will do. I used blackberries because we have them growing along our drive-way.  Let me tell you how much more eager I was to go pick after I discovered this little beauty!
On top of that you can pour some sweetened syrup, or I imagine you could sprinkle some sugar.  We have a grocery store here locally that sells Torani Syrup.  They have tons of flavors and many of them are sugar free if you don't have any objections to Splenda.  I've used Almond Roca and Vanilla flavor.  Just a little is all you need.
On top of that you pour a little Half and Half.  The fat free stuff has only 20 calories for 2 TBS.  Then just let it sit a minute or two and do it's magic.  Ice Cream!  Wow!
This is as simple as it is good!

PS I've been doing the same thing with fresh, non-frozen peaches and it's oh so good, too!

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Susie also made this recipe while she was visiting.  She cooked it in a bundt pan, and it looked as good as it tasted!

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup butter or oil (she used oil)
2 cups sugar (I think it was sweet enough this could be reduced a little)
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp grated orange peel (I don't believe she add this)
2 cups shredded zucchini
1/2 cup milk
Mix.  Pour into coated bundt pan.  Bake in preheated 350º oven for 50 minutes or until toothpick or cake tester comes out clean.  Invert (turn upside down) bundt pan to cook for about 10 min. before removing from pan.

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 TBS milk
1 tsp vanilla
Beat until smooth.  Drizzle over warm cake.