Project fail: painted doorknobs

Back in the Fall, I got inspired to spruce up the front door by removing the hardware and giving it a coat of Rustoleum in oil-rubbed bronze.  The project, as a whole, turned out to be a giant fail - even though I used a primer combo spray paint and I thought I had prepped the metal.. I even let it dry a long, long time. 

The hardware was so pretty against both sides of the door, and I really thought it would work.  After all, I had spray painted a couple of brass lamps and that worked out just fine.

So it was with sadness that a few months later I realized that spray-painting brass knobs on a well-used door does not work. 

Before I admitted total defeat I had gone back and cleaned paint off the knob, so it just needed some CLR to be shiny again.  But the handle down below?  I wasn't going to re-spray paint it once a week to cover the chipped paint.  So, last week I removed all of the hardware that gets wear and tear and cleaned it up.  Some mineral spirits and a multi-purpose sanding block helped me remove all of the paint.

Like I said, the original coating that keeps the brass pretty is long gone - this house is 17 years old after all.  So I will have to do some cleaning on this brass every 6 months or so.  But it looks better than chipped spray paint.  Lesson learned.  You have to do a little more research and use your own experience and common sense.  And you can't give up until you have it looking like it should!

  Maybe when my DIY psyche is all healed up, I will tackle putting the kickplate and the lock collars back to their original brass.  Then again, maybe not.  I like the duo tone of the hardware.  And removing that kickplate is a pain.   I spiffed up the entire front entrance, cleaning off the bricks and the mat, and set my plants back outside. 

 It's neat, it's clean.  I'm gonna leave it alone now.

Gina

Mealplan Monday #108 and window cleaning

 I've been on a mission lately to stick to my To To lists and get some things done that have been flat out ignored. Some of the things have been on my list for a long time - like cleaning windows and putting up curtains.

Monday - Boy Scout dinner - we take pie
Tuesday - (freezer) Crock Pot Pear, Apple, and Pork, rice
Wednesday - Pizza from take-out, salad
Thursday - Double Crunch Honey Garlic Chicken, peas, roasted red potatoes
Friday - Mom and Scout out
Saturday - YOYO
Sunday - Santa Fe Chicken Salad on lettuce with tortilla chips and guacamole
Dessert this week is Maple Walnut Blondies

Gina

5 thing Friday - new beginnings, good and bad, sussies, and intentions

A couple of weeks ago, my half-sister's daughter got married.  I didn't make the wedding, but from the looks of it, it was lovely.  They are a sweet couple and I wish them all the best things in life.  

My heart to you is given,
oh do give yours to me;
We'll lock them up together
And throw away the key.
-F. Saunders

 Does buying and eating kale on a regular basis

 ...make up for all the desserts I've been making? (the above is a Boston Cream Pie Poke cake)

 Everyone loves E. Bunny.  Even co-workers. 
And how thankful I am that I had a day with my dear ones. 

It used to be that keeping a clean house on a regular basis was so important to me that I could not let myself relax at the end of a long day unless the dishes were loaded in the dishwasher, the bathrooms and living areas straightened, and the laundry put up.  I have discovered that it can wait, and all will still be well.  Always learning.

Gina

The World's Easiest Cheesecake Pie, courtesy of OMT

Wow.  Go here for the recipe.  I made this for Easter and it was a HUGE hit.

This was pretty much the easiest Any Kind of Pie.  I topped mine with fresh raspberries and strawberries, and sprinkled a little powdered sugar on for looks.  I was lucky to get this picture, as it was cut into sixths and quickly demolished.

Dang.

I need to make another one of those real soon...

And so do you!

Easter afternoon 2014

Here's the hodge podge of what happens when most of your peeps don't want to pose for photos!

 

Gina

Mealplan Monday #107 and being frugal with food

Last week, before I bought groceries, I gave the fridge a clean sweep.  I usually do this right before I put new groceries up, but there were containers of things in there I had to deal with beforehand. And I'm glad I did, cause it made me more conscious of what all I had before I even set foot in the store.

A couple of onion halves, some baby carrots that no one was eating, two last stalks of celery, and two wrinkled bell peppers all got chopped and tossed together in baggies for the freezer.  These will be handy to saute for casseroles or add into soups.

 All of the leftover bread that was getting stale or dry got made into breadcrumbs.  I spread them out on a cookie sheet, set the oven to 350 for about 6-7 minutes, then left them in there for an hour or so.  and had crushable crunchy toast for crumbs.

 The three sad tomatoes I had were way too mushy for salads.  They got diced and frozen in a jelly jar.  Next time I need a can of diced tomatoes, I'll just thaw this out.  It all made me feel productive and thrifty for sure.

Monday - (freezer) Spinach and Salsa Chicken, rice
Tuesday - Stouffer Lasagna, salad
Wednesday - Pepper Jack and Guacamole grilled cheesers, tots
Thursday - Chicken Bacon Alfredo Pasta, broccoli
Friday - Four Ingredient Enchiladas, salad
Saturday - Dad grill
Sunday - Chicken Pot Pie

Breakfast was frugal, too.  Pan-fried leftover sliced baked potato with two eggs and a bit of cheese.

I can't grocery shop on an empty stomach, you know.

Gina

Chocolate Chip Bacon Pecan Cookies

These were super delish and I had everything on hand to make them, so I did! Scout and I gobbled them up - they are best warm from the oven.  I thought they were some of the best chocolate chip cookies I've ever made.  Bubbie and Hubby took a little more convincing, but as my mother used to say:  MORE FOR ME.  

Chocolate Chip Bacon Pecan Cookies
5 strips good quality smoked bacon (not thick slice or peppered!), cooked crisp and crumbled
1 c. plus 3 T flour
1/2 t. each salt and baking soda
3/4 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/3 c. each white and brown sugar
1 egg
1 t. maple extract (or vanilla)
2/3 c. chocolate chips (I use Ghiradelli semi-sweet)
1/2 chopped pecans

Cream butter and sugars.  Add egg and extract and mix well.  Mix dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then mix into creamed butter and sugar, blending well.  Add bacon, chocolate chips, and pecans.  Mix well, then chill the dough a couple of hours.  Drop by rounded teaspoons on cookie sheet and bake 10-12 minutes at 350 - longer if you like jumbo cookies like we do!

I think the bacon lent a nice smokey sweetness to the cookie - 

try them and see what you think!

Gina

*Its been a few years since I've made these cookies, but we were just talking about it at work last week and I think it may be on my short list of cookies to make for co-workers!

Shared with:

Miz Helen's 5th Annual Holiday Cookie Recipe Exchange

Mealplan Monday #106 and the Easter Menu

Because I am off on Easter Sunday I have more time to prepare a feast this coming week! 

 Rustown Art

******

Monday - Meatloaf, mashed, peas and carrots
Tuesday - (freezer) Apricot Chicken, couscous, kale
Wednesday - Creamy Lemon Chicken with bacon and green beans, garlic toast
Thursday - Tacos al Pastor, charro beans
Friday - Turkey Pesto Meatballs, butter garlic linguini, broccoli
Saturday - Dad grill - Caribbean Steak
Sunday - Simple Roasted Pork Shoulder, Pan Fried Asparagus, Crack Potatoes, 7-Up rolls, Rock Island Tea, Easy Cheesecake Pie (with lemon and raspberry topping)

Rustown Art

Gina

5 thing Friday - Sugar, siblings, treats, shoesies, wrinkles

I thought I had it all figured out that Sugar had a food allergy to the canned food.  Once I started feeding her old lady dry food, she did so much better.  Then I ran out and subbed in some other dry food that was for hairballs.  Vomit City.  Again. 

 It's a good thing we like her.

 These two came for dinner on Sunday and had not seen each other since New Year's Day.  So they had to catch up on pestering, finger poking,

 and shunning the photographer.  It will be sad for them when The Girl moves to the big city after graduation.  I envision Firstborn staying put in Austin.  But I could be wrong.

 I purchased these big plastic eggs to put a few treats in.  My kids aren't really kids any more (sniff).  Still, its fun to do.

 Speaking of Easter, I am OFF that Sunday!  I get to go to church in my new pretty pink Easter sandals and have a great meal with all my peeps.  Maybe I will talk Scout into taking another family photo.

Hubby and I still haven't made progress on ripping the carpet up in the hallway to replace it with laminate.  Those wrinkles travel all the way down the hall and into the master bedroom and closet.  The plan is to get the bedroom carpet cleaned and re-stretched, tile the bathrooms, and install laminate in the hall.  As you can see, we have made zero progress.

Gina

Cheesey Olive French Bread

I was making a big pot of beans and leftover pork ribs last week and felt pretty blah over making cornbread.  Then I remembered that I had everything to make this delish cheesey French Bread!

A pot of beans is the easiest dinner to make at my house.  Everyone eats them up without complaint, and if there's leftover meat from grill night, it goes right on into the pot.  I wash and pick through the beans, but I don't soak them.  Cover them with water and added the frozen meat.  

I first saw this French Bread in the Pioneer Woman's cookbook, but since then I've seen it just about everywhere on the interwebs, and true to form, I had to tinker with the ingredients a little to fit what I had on hand.

I used: a half cup of mayo, 6 T of real butter, 1/3 jar of mixed black and green olives, some roasted red and yellow bell peppers, the last three green onions from the week, a nub of cheddar, and some monterrey jack.  I estimate I used a little over a cup of shredded cheese.

 I softened the butter in the bowl, then started chopping and measuring all the veggies and dumped them in.

 In went the mayo and the cheese, followed by some fresh-ground black pepper.

  Preheat the oven to 400 or so.

Cut the bread in half and slather the cheese topping on.

 I baked it about 10 minutes or so.  I was going for some golden edges on the bread.

Yep.  That was good!

Gina

Mealplan Monday #105 and touches of Easter

When I get a chance to pretty something up, I'm in that creative zone.  I whistle or sing, I talk out loud to the cat, I feel happy.  

I just added a few sprigs of spring to the china cabinet, along with several bunnies.  I spy 5 bunnies, can you? I didn't buy anything new here, just used stuff I already had.

   

Monday - (Freezer) Chicken and Rice Casserole, salad
Tuesday - Ham and Cheese Party Rolls, canned soup
Wednesday - Pasta with Sausage and Chard, carrots
Thursday - Salsa Verde Chicken and Dumplings, corn
Friday - Crock Pot BBQwiches, chips, Big as Yo Face Cookies*
Saturday - Kitchen Closed!
Sunday - Chicken Pot Pie, salad
Dessert this week (besides the cookies) will be Vanilla Wafer Cake
*These are just homemade chocolate chip cookies that are a little on the large side.  When my kids were little they thought the bigger the cookie, the better!

Gina

Freezer meals #7

Another set of meals for my freezer - it sure is nice not to have to worry about what to cook Sunday through Tuesday.  Here's the collection:

Baked Stuffed Bell Peppers, adapted from a crock pot recipe from here.  I think I will do these in the oven and include some marinara on top.  

The filling has a combo of Italian Sausage and ground beef - a little different from the original recipe. And they have a secret ingredient that I think will work out great! 

Honey Pork Chops - Mix 1/2 c. honey, 1/4 c. cider vinegar, 1/4 t. ground ginger, 1 mashed glove garlic, and 2 T soy sauce as a marinade for 5 thick cut pork chops to grill.

Crock Pot Apricot Chicken - I poured this sauce over boneless, skinless chicken thighs: 1 c. apricot preserves, 1 envelope onion soup mix, 1 c. Catalina dressing.  I will cook on low 6-8 hours from frozen.

Honey Garlic Chicken - I poured this sauce over boneless, skinless chicken thighs: 5 cloves chopped garlic, 1 t. oregano, 3/4 c. soy sauce, 1/4 c. ketchup, 1/2 c. spicy honey BBQ sauce, 1/3 c. honey, S & P.  I will cook from frozen for 6-8 hours.

Spinach and Salsa Chicken - In a gallon zip loc, mix 1 package boneless skinless chicken thighs with 2 c. salsa (I made fresh), 1 box frozen spinach, thawed and drained, 2 T California Style lemon pepper. I will cook on low, from frozen 6-8 hours.

Mediterranean Pork Chops - These are soooo good!

Crock Pot Pear, Apple, and Pork - 2 sliced apples, 2 sliced pears, 3# cubed pork, 1 sliced onion, 3/4 c. brown sugar, 1 c. apple juice, 1/4 c. cider vinegar, 3 T mustard, S & P. (This is a recipe I adjusted; find the original here.  I didn't peel the apples or pears and I used thick cut rib eye pork chops cause I got a deal on 'em.  I also probably won't add the extra water.)  I will cook on low 6-8 hours from frozen.

And by the by, this is the handy dandy trick I use to fill up the bags as I go - put it in a large bowl so you can just keep adding ingredients without spillage.  Another good thing to do is to empty out the dishwasher so you can load it as you go, and wipe the counters down with a 10% bleach water solution when you are done preparing all that raw meat.

OK, last thing I made was:

Disney's Baked Ravioli from Plain Chicken.  The sauce was a little labor intensive, so I'm glad I made it in advance to freeze.  I will thaw it to proceed with the recipe.  it smelled great, and it's about the closest I'll get to going to Disney.

Eight meals didn't take up all of the real estate in our skinny freezer, so that was good.  I also put a couple of cheater meals in here - frozen Stouffer's dinners I had a coupon for.  Now to put my feet up and rest before another busy weekend!

Gina