Old-Fashioned Butterscotch Pudding and why it's gross.

I was reading a post for Homemade Butterscotch Pudding over at Lynn's Kitchen Adventures and it looked really good. It called for butterscotch chips, which I did not have and I didn't want to run to the store.  I noticed a lady in the comment section posted that she had a recipe her mom used to make from a 1939 cook book called "The Working Girl Must Eat" by Hazel Young.  So, I thought...well, certainly that has to be  great, right?  Uhhhh, not so much.  Not sure why I'm even posting it if we didn't care for it, but maybe you can learn from my mistakes, right?

 

Ingredients:

1C Brown Sugar

1/4C Corn Starch*

Dash of Salt

2C milk

1 Egg

3T Butter

1t Vanilla

Combine brown sugar, starch, salt, milk and egg 

(basically everything but the butter and vanilla) in a sauce pan.

Whisk together and cook over medium heat for approximately

10 minutes, stirring constantly. 

 Remove from heat and add in butter and vanilla.  Whisk.

Can you see the weird texture?  Look just north of the butter.  Strange.

Pour into cups and cover directly with plastic wrap or plop on a lid.

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, preferably six or more.

*Before I make any comments, I should give you a disclaimer: the recipe called for flour rather than cornstarch, but I just couldn't get myself to do it!  I envisioned butterscotch gravy! Ewwwww!  In no way can I fathom making pudding with flour.  It's unnatural.  It also called to do this over a double boiler.  Maybe this is why I had the weird texture?  I dunno, but come on...that's too much work for pudding, people!  LOL!

It's not that the taste was bad, it was just not what we're used to when we think of butterscotch.  You know, we're kinda thinking it will taste like the fake flavor in the box, or perhaps a more lighter version of it.  This just tasted like brown sugar pudding, if there is such a thing.  I regret to say that we ended up throwing half of it out.  I really hate wasting, but no one would eat it.  It was the texture that bothered us more than anything.  It was kind of grainy.  Not at all smooth and creamy, like you expect out of a pudding.  I'm gonna consider this one a flop.  I would really like to try Lynn's version if I can find some butterscotch chips for dirt cheap!  Had this worked out, it would have been a real bargain at 98 cents total to make.  But I'd rather pay a little more and have something we'll really eat.  Sorry Hazel.

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"Instant" Mac N Cheese and why it's better to just buy the darn box!

I've seen other people make quick mac and cheese on their sites and I've always thought....how can that possibly be cheaper?  I guess if you're buying the big name brand, it could be cheaper.  We buy ours at Aldi every day for 35c a box, so that's hard to beat.  I thought I'd try it out to see. Here's the deal...

I started out with what I thought I'd need for ingredients:
1/4C Milk (Ended up using a whole cup)
2T Butter
2T Flour
1 1/2C Macaroni Noodles
2 Pcs of American Cheese (I was trying to be frugal as possible with it)

So, everyone knows how to make mac and cheese from the box, right?

You boil your water and add your noodles.

You drain your noodles after 8 minutes. 

And here's where we're gonna do something different.  Leave the

noodles in the strainer and put the same pot back on the stove.

Add in two Tablespoons butter and allow to melt.

Sprinkle 2T Flour over that and mix well.

Cook for a couple of minutes to get the raw flour taste out.

Here's where I (stupidly) thought I could get away with adding 1/4C

of milk in, like the box calls for.  

And here's what I ended up with.  A seized up glob of roux glue, lol!

So, I ended up adding 3/4C more milk.  Much better.  This is just

your basic white sauce, or Bechamel sauce.  Sounds fancy, huh?

Turn heat to low. Even though I am not a fan of processed cheese, I

added two pulled-apart pieces of American Cheese.  I figured 

Tommy would like it and that's more important than if I did.

Stir until melted.  Remove from heat.

Add in that now-congealed mass of noodles and give it a good stir.

You now have homemade "instant" mac and cheese, sorta.

Notes:

So, here's the dealio.  I didn't care for this at all.  Tommy thought it was good, but half way through, decided he didn't want any more.  This homemade version cost me $1.02 to make.  I considered using cheddar, but then it would have cost even more.  I can buy a box of Cheese Club Brand Mac N Cheese every day at Aldi for 35c.  With the added (1/4C) milk and butter (I only use 2T), it comes in at 54c, so almost half price.

Is it healthier?  No, I guess not.  It does have a lot of sodium...1890, whereas mine comes in at 790.  Of course, mine was so bland, it needed salt sprinkled on when served, so my number should technically be a little higher.  I am not a big fan of sodium (or the added chemicals), but budget-wise, the box wins.  Now, if you're one of those people who will pay $1.39 for the Kraft version, then making it at home would be a cheaper alternative.  But I gotta tell you, the Cheese Club one from Aldi actually tastes better!  Yup, it's true!  So, I'm sticking with the box for now.

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Fried Cheese Sticks...yum!

Mmmmmmm, fried cheese!  Why is it that everything that tastes so darn good is so bad for you?   Oh, well. Let's make 'em anyway!

Ingredients:
Mozzarella Cheese
Vegetable Oil
1/4C A/P Flour
Panko Bread CrumbsPaprika
Black Pepper
Salt
Parsley

Start by cutting your cheese into sticks. 

Mine are approximately one ounce each. 

Set up your breading station.  Flour in one, egg in another, panko in the last.

I added a little bit of salt, pepper and paprika into each container.  (Be careful

with the salt, depending on the cheese you choose)  I saved the parsley

for the container with the panko.  How much?  Ehhh...

as much as looks good.  I stayed away from garlic powder because I 

knew it would burn and get bitter.  Note: my containers will change order

when I bread use them. I wasn't thinking when I set up this shot.  I should

also tell you that after I mixed the panko together, I decided it was too 

chunky, so I processed it in my coffee grinder. 

Start by dipping your cheese in the flour mixture.

Then dip in your egg mixture

And lastly in your panko mixture.

Set aside and continue on with the rest.  Note:  Now would have

been a good time to throw these in the freezer for a couple of hours.

They came out okay, but as you read on, you'll see what happened.

Heat up about 1/2" of oil in a skillet (or use a deep fryer if you have one).

Toss about 4 in at a time.  Okay, don't toss them, gently lay them down.

If you look closely, you can see how my cheese is already melting.

Turn and brown on each side.  Put on paper towels to briefly drain,

saying "arrrrrggghhhh" aloud when one of your cheese sticks escapes

from it's crusty shell, darn it!

Fry up the rest and serve with some marinara, if desired.

Or, like me, throw some El Pato in the microwave, make

a mess of the little bowl, but take the picture anyway.

Thank goodness I'm not a food stylist.  I'd fail miserably!  :)

Next time, I'm freezing them for sure!  While these tasted really good, they were really falling apart as we were trying to eat them.  I just pulled what spices appealed to me, and I was really surprised at how good they were.  I would definitely make these again.  Try them yourself and let me know what you think!

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REAL FOOD OPTION : if I were to make these for my family now, I would use Non hydrogenated Lard or Expeller Pressed Coconut Oil to fry these in.  I would also probably use pork rinds that had been powdered in a coffee grinder for the coating.  Spices would be the same.

Crusty French Bread in a bread machine

A while back I made this crusty French bread in my bread machine. I made a half batch (which is what the recipe reflects) to see if we liked it first.  We did!  Here's what you'll need:

Ingredients:
1C Warm Water (110-115F)
1T Sugar
1 1/4t Yeast
1T Veg or Olive Oil
3C A/P Flour
1 1/2t Salt
Egg      (Ignore that little guy)

I always add my ingredients in the same order: 

Warm water, sugar, yeast and oil first.  

This allows your yeast to bloom.  

Let it sit for about 5 or 10 minutes.

After the yeast has bubbled up and proved it's worth, 

I add in my flour and salt.

Now, you see how there's an egg in my ingredient picture?

Well, I had this idea that I was going to make the dough in my bread maker, 

form a loaf, brush with egg, then bake a crusty loaf in the oven.  

Soon realizing it was going to get to 587 degrees that day outside, 

I decided to just use the bread machine.  Moving on....

Hit small light loaf on your bread machine and hit start.

A couple of hours later, you have this little bundle of joy!

I waited until it was cool enough that I didn't scorch my hands off, 

then cut myself a piece and slathered with some whipped butter! 

Yumm-o! It was crusty, it was tear-y 

(tear, like rip, not tear, like boo hoo), it was delish! 

Later that day, we had grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch!

What is the deal with my camera person?!  Sheesh!

The next day, we had eggs, bacon and you guessed it...toast!

It was good and crusty.  Just do it in the toaster rather than 

the toaster oven.  That makes it hard as a rock!

Why not make some homemade bread yourself? Go on, give it a try.  You can do it!  The best part...

It only costs about 35c to make this whole loaf!  Now, that's almost as satisfying as eating it!
Recipe courtesy of Lynda's Recipe Box, adapted to use in bread machine.
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Homemade Vanilla Pudding

I made this a few weeks ago, but am finally getting around to posting it.  This makes 4 generous 1 cup servings or 8 unsatisfying 1/2C servings, lol!  Here's what you need:

Ingredients:
3/4C Sugar
1/4C Corn Starch
1/8t  Salt
3 1/2C Milk
3 Egg Yolks
1T Butter
1T Vanilla

Combine sugar, salt and corn starch in a sauce pan. Whisk together.

Whisk in milk and egg yolks.

Cook over medium high heat, stirring constantly until thickened.

This took mine about 8 minutes because I gradually turn the heat up.

I'm afraid of scorching it and ruining the whole thing, lol!

Remove from heat and add butter.

And lastly, add in your vanilla.  The reason you don't add it earlier

is because it's made up of alcohol and will just dissipate under high heat.

I've never had a problem with lumps in my pudding.

I think if you stir constantly and keep your heat low enough, 

you won't have a problem.  But if it is lumpy, just strain it.  No biggie.

Pour into desired containers and either place a piece of plastic wrap

directly on top of the pudding, or be lazy like me and use a lid.

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.  Enjoy!

Notes:

This was sooooo good. I just love the old-fashioned taste of it.  Stop making that icky pudding out of a box and give this a try.  Besides, this whole batch makes more than you can get in a box, but only costs $1.14 total!  It's so much better for your family, takes only a few minutes and the taste can't be found in a box, I promise you.  You'll be glad you did! Recipe courtesy of Lynn's Kitchen Adventures.

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Homemade Tartar Sauce

When we were getting ready for our mongo garage sale (while hubby was out of town), I wanted to fix meals that were appealing to my son, but also meals that didn't require a lot of extra effort.  I was really wiped out from moving boxes and bins, sorting/lifting, etc...just a lot of work.  Anyway, I found some cheap battered fish filets and they sounded pretty easy for dinner.  I didn't have any tartar sauce though. I whipped some up, just going off of instincts.  I have no clue what's really in it, but this fit the bill.  I've certainly had better, but I sure liked the fact that I got over a 1/4 cup of tartar sauce for mere pennies.  When you buy it in the store, you get  a little over a cup and it costs about 2 bucks.  Yikes!  I made a small batch since it was just the two of us.  You can easily double or triple this for a larger family. Here's what you need...

Ingredients:
1/4C REAL Mayo
1T Dill Relish
1t Dill Weed (which, looking back, I wish I hadn't have added. It clashed with the relish somehow)
Pinch of Tarragon
Squeeze of Lemon
1t Dried Minced Onion (added as an afterthought...not pictured)
Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix all spices except for salt and pepper in a small bowl 

with the mayo. Boy, these instructions are hard to follow, yes?

I gave it a good stir and realized it needed something else, so

that's when I added the minced onion.  It helped a lot.  Taste it

and add your salt and pepper to taste.

Mix well and it should look something like this.  Cover and 

pop it in the fridge for at least an hour so the flavors have 

time to meld and so the minced onion softens.  I didn't have

time for this, so our tartar sauce was a bit crunchy, lol!

Serve over your favorite fat-filled, calorie-dense battered fish filets.

I served it up with some mac 'n cheese and some uncooked carrots.

The whole meal took about 25 minutes start to finish, which in my

book lately, is fairly quick and requires minimal effort.  While not

the healthiest meal in the world, I have to think it's better than

frozen pizza.  Not to mention, this whole meal costs about a buck!

The best thing is that you don't get all of the added sodium and preservatives in the jarred stuff.  Enjoy!
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Homemade Croutons

Ever made homemade croutons?  Why not?  They're so easy, I promise!  You'll never pay $2 to $3 a package ever again when you can make them for pennies.  Start by saving that hard old heel of bread that no one will eat!  Here's what you need:

 Ingredients:

An old heel (NO, I'm not talking about your husband!  A heel of bread!)
Olive Oil
Garlic Powder
Salt
Pepper

If you bread is not already sliced, do so now.

Brush each slice with olive oil.  I find it best

if I put a couple of Tablespoons in a little ramekin

and dip my brush in it.  If you squirt it on top, 

you tend to use a lot more.

Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Use any 

dried herbs/spices that you enjoy.  Be careful with the 

garlic powder.  I used a little too much and it was a 

little overpowering and the slightest bit bitter.

Cut into 3/4" to 1" pieces depending on preference.

 Place on a parch-lined baking sheet in a single layer.

Bake at 250F for about 1/2 hour, depending on the amount of

moisture left in your bread.  Flip about half way through.  They're done 

when they're crunchy without any chewiness left to them. 

Place in a zip top bag and date.  I keep mine in the cupboard.

My heel of bread was cut into three thick slices.  This made enough to easily fill a bag or box of store bought croutons and costs about 15 cents to make.  I love how much I'm saving by doing this!  So easy, too!

New to making things at home from scratch?  This is probably one of the easiest things you can start with.

Give it a try and let me know what you think.  Crunch, crunch, crunch!
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