Nostalgia in a cake!

 My mom made this cake regularly. Jello Poke Cake! We had a homemade dessert after almost every meal. It is a perfect dessert for the current hot weather. Bake a white cake according to the cake mix directions. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, and then poke with a fork or chopstick at 1/2 inch intervals. 

Dissolve a 3 oz. package of jello in 1 cup of boiling water. Add the cold water and spoon over the cake while still in the pan. Chill and top with cool whip or homemade whipped topping. We loved this cake made with watermelon jello! I used Black Cherry Jello and flavored my whipped topping with almond flavoring. YUMMY!

The perfect quick and cool dessert for summertime.
Y'all come back and say hello!
Lorilee

First Lemon Curd

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One of my students brought some lovely Meyer Lemons to me for Christmas. I finally found some spare time to try making Lemon Curd. Oh my, it is wonderful. I am definitely addicted. I have always loved lemon. My Grandma used to make meringue pies. Lemon was my favorite. Every once in a long while, we would get donuts for a treat when I was younger. The lemon-filled was my favorite. 

I found a recipe that calls for creaming the ingredients before cooking.

It is definitely a keeper. Try it here.
It will bring a ray of sunshine to your winter days!
We are thrilled in south Texas to have had some cloudy and rainy weather! The rain is much needed. 
I have been home all week with the flu.(The curd was actually made last week. I'm not blogging in real time!)
Y'all come back,
Lorilee

Bee hive beverage jar

One day I came to the conclusion that I really needed a beverage jar! Then my hubby and I went into Pier One one evening before going to eat. I saw this one and knew it was meant to be. It was also on sale! I have it raised on a large serving bowl. I am thinking of filling the bowl with lemons when serving lemonade! Of course, anything to match a theme could be used! Battery powered candles might look nice with greenery or flowers.
Y'all come back,
Lorilee

Old Stuff, Strudel and a Scorpion

One would think that I could post more consistently now that I am out of school for the summer! I have not yet shared some awesome things that I got at an estate sale. This is a Kromax Lazy Susan. I love it! The stainless base could also be used separately.

I just love its sparkle! The original box was also there!

I also found this wonderful stainless sugar and creamer set,

along with a glass hen.

I spent one whole day making strudels. I made four in all. I baked one and froze the rest to bake later.

My hubby took one of his weeks of vacation the first week of June. We didn't go anywhere, but I did manage to talk him into going to the mall and our newly opened T.J. Maxx. We each found some clothes. We also cleaned out our closet. These are bags destined for Goodwill. I've also done quite a bit of non-blogworthy cleaning! I attended a 2 day teacher training, and I nearly got stung by a scorpion for the 4th time in my bed. I was awakened as I felt something on my sleeve. Still half asleep, I instinctively moved to brush at my sleeve. Then I felt the familiar sensation of a scorpion. It didn't manage a direct sting, but it managed to brush my finger with venom. I sat up, yelling at my husband to turn on the light. Then, we couldn't find it, and I was afraid to even move. Finally, we spotted it on the sheet, so I slid out of bed. My husband grabbed the first shoes he saw, his Crocs, and attempted to smoosh it between them. Crocs are NOT effective scorpion smooshers. Then we couldn't find it AGAIN. We pulled back sheets, moved pillows, lifted dust ruffles and looked beneath furniture to no avail. All we found was an abundance of dust bunnies!  Finally, my husband said that HE wasn't getting back in that bed and was just going to get ready for work. I decided to vacuum the dust bunnies. While vacuuming, I found the scorpion, but I vacuumed it up before it registered in my brain! I should have taken out the bag and thrown it way, but I didn't want to waste a fresh bag. (SEBO bags are not cheap) The next evening, I was with family at the lake, when my husband texted to inform me that he had gotten into the shower to find a scorpion on the shower curtain. We decided that the scorpion had crawled out of the vacuum! I am still having trouble sleeping in my bed!
Y'all come back,
Lorilee

A Family Affair-making sausage

I wish I could manage to blog in REAL time instead of a week behind! Oh, well. It is what it is! LAST Saturday, I went out to my Dad and Stepmom's for some sausage-making! In the photo, my brother, his youngest son and my Dad are stuffing the first Summer Sausage we have ever made. It is wonderful! We will definitely be making it again!

Here the summer sausage is stuffed and waiting to be smoked, while we stuffed the regular sausage.

We hang the links in a pump house. We were lucky to have a cool, clear and dry day!

We hung the summer sausage last!

The last step is to get the hickory shavings lit, and the smoking begins. It smells wonderful! After several hours of smoking the sausage is ready to wrap, freeze and provide many delicious meals!

Y'all come back,

Lorilee

Does any one else buy food just for the jar?

I am a push-over for a pretty jar! My local H.E.B. carried these German mustards for a short time. I had to buy some just for the jars. My great-grandfather, Gottlieb, came to America from a town called Stein on the Rhine River.Oh, and the mustard was great! Has anyone else ever bought something just for the jar?

Y'all come back,

Lorilee 

Before November ends!

 I did finish painting my kitchen stools black. The paint stayed a bit tacky for awhile, but they are finally completely cured.

 It seems like yesterday that I put out my fall decorations. Now I will be replacing them with Christmas decorations.

 We decided to try our hand at frying our turkey this year instead of baking. We ended up frying 3 turkeys. They were wonderful. We prefer fried over baked!

Luckily, we had nice weather for it! Of course, we had plenty of food. The menu included: the fried turkey, Giblet gravy, Cornbread dressings, jellied cranberry, Broccoli Rice, Green Beans, Sweet Potato Casserole, Cherry Coke Salad, Stuffed Celery, Rolls, Fruit Salad, Creamy Pumpkin Pie, Kentucky Pecan Pie, German Potatoes, Sourdough bread, Buttermilk Pie, and Traditional Pumpkin Pie.
Now on to the Christmas preparations!
Y'all come back,
Lorilee

Pears and Cherries

   On the Sunday between teacher-inservice and school starting, I made 3 loaves of bread and cooked and canned some pears. I was lucky to have a friend share some pears from her tree. All this cooking/baking made my  kitchen REALLY hot. I can't use a regular canning pot on my glass topped stove. I have a large pot and a strainer type insert to keep the jars off the bottom. It is not large enough for quart jars though. I am planning to get a propane burner and start using it on my patio for the water bath part of canning!
YES, that was 3 weeks ago, but I wanted to share my dresser first!
Y'all come back,
Lorilee
   

Watch out "Cake Boss"!

My friend, Bernadette, and her daughter, Sarah, came over on Thursday afternoon for some cake decorating fun. We started with making the buttercream frosting, sealing the crumbs with a thin layer, the final frosting and smoothing with plastic wrap.

Sarah did a little piping, but young hands have difficulty with the pastry bag! She LOVED using fondant. I had some leftover fondant from the "Giraffe Cake". I used this recipe for the fondant.

I think fondant is a great way for the younger crowd to decorate cakes. It is so similar to using playdough!

She did an awesome job.

I love her look of concentration.

I certainly had fun, and I'm pretty sure she did too!

Watch out "Cake Boss". (It is her favorite show.)

Y'all come back,

Lorilee



Solo Strudel-making!

 I decided to try making some strudel solo while my lesson was still fresh in my mind. Never mind that I also wanted some to eat! I gathered the ingredients and made my dough the day before, keeping it refrigerated until I was ready to roll out, fill and roll up!

 The next afternoon, I gathered my filling ingredients.

 I decided to use Red Delicious and Granny Smith  apples. Grandma uses Red Delicious.

 I cored them and peeled just some of the peeling before chopping them in my food processor. I added some lemon juice.

 I rolled out the dough on the cotton cloth Grandma gave me, brushed on melted butter and sprinkled on 1/3 of the filling ingredients.

 YUMMY!

 Then, using the cloth to lift the dough, I began rolling it up.

 I lifted the end over onto the roll and sealed the edges.

 I brushed more melted butter onto the strudel and some onto the foil. At this point I could have wrapped it in foil and put it into the freezer to be baked another time. However, I wanted to eat one, so I baked this one. It makes clean-up easier to bake it on the foil. Sometimes the filling can bubble out.

 By the time I got the photo, several pieces were already eaten.  Repeat 2 more times for a total of 3 studels.

 THEN wash lots of dishes.

The chickens and rabbit got the apples cores and peels.

Grandma's Strudel

1 ½ sticks oleo, softened

2 egg yolks

1 cup warm milk

3 cups flour

1/8 tsp. Salt

Mix well and chill at least 3 hours or overnight.

Roll out dough onto cotton cloth until very thin. For 3 strudels divide equally and layer

2 sticks butter, melted (brush onto dough)

 9 or 10 apples, cored, peeled and chopped (sprinkle with lemon juice to prevent browning)

1 package saltine crackers crushed

3 cups chopped pecans

2 cups sugar

cinnamon

 raisins

 coconut

Tightly roll strudel, using towel to push the dough. Seal edges and brush with butter. If freezing place onto well-buttered foil and seal tightly. Thaw to bake. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes until well-browned.



Grandma's Apple Strudel

 Last week, my 90-year-old grandma gave apple strudel making lessons! She was excited about sharing her knowledge, and we were excited about learning her technique. She had 3 copies of her recipe already handwritten for each of us along with a square of cotton sheet cut and hemmed for us to take home. The cotton cloth is the secret to successful strudel rolling!

 My step-mom(Barbara), myself, and my cousin's wife(Denise) watched intently as she rolled out the dough almost paper thin. Barbara asked how old her rolling pin was. Grandma Bessie replied, "You'd have to ask MY grandma". I think it is safe to say it is an antique!

 Here is mine all buttered and ready for the oven. We wrapped them and placed them in the freezer until the end of the day and baked them at home.

My most memorable moment of the day was when Grandma Bessie told me she was so excited to have been able to teach three teachers something they didn't already know! (Denise and I are currently teaching, and Barbara is a retired homemaking teacher and counselor.) Grandma's filling is chopped apples, crushed saltine crackers, chopped pecans, raisins, coconut, sugar and cinnamon sprinkled on the dough that is covered with melted butter.
I hope to make some strudel soon and take more photos of the steps involved. I was too busy watching and helping to take my usual photos!
Y'all come back!
Lorilee