Sep152009

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies (a.k.a. Zebra Cookies)

By Country Gal | September 15, 2009 | Posted in Chocolate, Cookies and Bars, Cooking and Food | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies When my daughter first showed me this recipe, I wasn’t very excited.

When I heard the word “crinkle” – I instantly thought of crunchy and I am a soft cookie person.

I was very pleasantly surprised when these came out of the oven! They were soft and chewy inside with a slightly crisp but velvety sweet outside.

My oldest son called them “storm troopers” Since they reminded him of the black and white armor worn by the storm troopers from Star Wars.

But I think they look more like zebras.

I guess you could call that a generation gap!

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup cocoa
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Powdered sugar

Combine granulated sugar and oil in large bowl; add cocoa and mix well. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Slowly add the flour mixture to the cocoa mixture, beating well.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until dough is firm enough to handle, at least 6 hours. (We went overnight.)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Shape dough into 1-inch balls and roll in powdered sugar to coat. Place about 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheets.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until almost no indentation remains when touched lightly and tops are crackled. Cool slightly before removing from cookie sheets to wire racks. Cool completely. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.

These are absolutely amazing when warm from the oven, but will still taste great for awhile in a tight container on the counter. I haven’t tried freezing them (they didn’t last that long here!), so I don’t know what the powdered sugar will do in the freezer.

Enjoy!

By Country Gal | Posted in Chocolate, Cookies and Bars, Cooking and Food | Tagged , | Comments (0)
Sep122009

911 – Our Battle Continues

By Country Gal | September 12, 2009 | Posted in Deep Thoughts | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

800px-WTC-Fireman_requests_10_more_colleagesa

9/11

Who can forget the images, the horror, and the shock as the reality of that day unfolded.

The incredible loss of human life – especially civilians – brought the reality of war to our doorstep.

I recently watched the classic movie Mrs. Miniver and was struck again by the Vicar”s speech at the end of the movie.

I saw some remarkable parallels between the incredible courage and strength shown by the British during WWII as the Nazi war machine hammered the English coast for weeks on end – and the battle we are facing in our country today.

The Vicar’s speech:

“We, in this quiet corner of England, have suffered the loss of friends very dear to us. Some close to this church: George West, choir boy; James Bellard, station master and bell ringer and a proud winner, only one hour before his death, of the Belding Cup for his beautiful Miniver rose; and our hearts go out in sympathy to the two families who share the cruel loss of a young girl who was married at this altar only two weeks ago.

The homes of many of us have been destroyed, and the lives of young and old have been taken. There is scarcely a household that hasn’t been struck to the heart. And why? Surely you must have asked yourself this question. Why in all conscience should these be the ones to suffer? Children, old people, a young girl at the height of her loveliness. Why these? Are these our soldiers? Are these our fighters? Why should they be sacrificed?

I shall tell you why.

Because this is not only a war of soldiers in uniform. It is a war of the people, of all the people, and it must be fought not only on the battlefield, but in the cities and in the villages, in the factories and on the farms, in the home, and in the heart of every man, woman, and child who loves freedom!

Well, we have buried our dead, but we shall not forget them.

Instead they will inspire us with an unbreakable determination to free ourselves and those who come after us from the tyranny and terror that threaten to strike us down.

This is the people’s war!

It is our war!

We are the fighters! Fight it then! Fight it with all that is in us.

And may God defend the right.”

We are still in battle – fighting for the freedom our country has been founded on.

And our battle isn’t just fought in the deserts of the middle East. It is fought in our cities, our homes and our minds.

This is our battle people!

Our freedoms are at stake.

May God defend our rights.

By Country Gal | Posted in Deep Thoughts | Tagged , , | Comments (0)
Sep092009

Patti Pan Summer Squash

By Country Gal | September 9, 2009 | Posted in Gardening, Harvesting | Tagged , | Comments (0)

We spent a wonderful weekend on the prairie with Papa Jim and Nana Shirley and enjoyed these Patti pans every morning! There were yummy in our omelets and so cute!

Patti Pans

Are you tired of those long green things that remind you of smooth cucumbers? Want something frilly & white for a change? Try the Patti Pan!

Their official name is Early White Bush Scallop Squash. We were introduced to them many years ago when visiting friends on one of our fall Minnesota fishing trips. Finding seeds here in Iowa was a challenge, but they are now a tradition in our Prairie Garden.

You can plant them directly into the garden in hills of 3 to 5 seeds after all danger of frost is past.   In a week you will see the green leaves emerging and a Patti Pan will be ready to eat in 50 days!

They do the vine thing so give them some room.

Patti Pan’s are very mild, low in calories and a good source of Vitamin A. For optimum flavor pick when about 4 to 6 inches in diameter. You can use the bigger ones, but the outside is tough, making it necessary to peel.

We like them sliced and sauteed with onion & green pepper as a side dish for any meal. This year we experimented with some zucchini recipes and found that they were interchangeable.

Next year we will try a yellow variety that we found after the garden was planted!

-Nana Shirley

By Country Gal | Posted in Gardening, Harvesting | Tagged , | Comments (0)
Sep092009

Chocolate Streusal Bars

By Country Gal | September 9, 2009 | Posted in Chocolate, Cookies and Bars, Cooking and Food | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

Chocolate Streusal BarsSince my favorite part of an apple crisp is the crunchy topping, and you all know that I love chocolate, you can understand my excitement when I found the recipes for these yummy bars!

A gooey chocolate brownie base with a crunchy, nutty, chocolate topping, these were a real hit in  my family!

I seriously considered hiding them from the children in my secret place deep in the freezer – but I refrained. At least I shared some!

Chocolate Streusal Bars
From the Hershey’s Chocolate Cookbook (a must have cookbook for the serious chocolate lover!)

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
1 egg
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
2 cups (12 ounce package) HERSHEY’S SPECIAL DARK Chocolate Chips or HERSHEY’S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips, divided
1 cup coarsely chopped nuts

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13X9X2-inch baking pan.

Stir together flour, sugar, and cocoa in large bowl. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add egg; mix well. Set aside 1-1/2 cups mixture. Press remaining mixture onto bottom of prepared pan.

Bake 10 minutes. Meanwhile, place sweetened condensed milk and 1 cup chocolate chips in medium microwave-safe bowl; stir. Microwave at MEDIUM (50%) 1 to 1-1/2 minutes or until chips are melted and mixture is smooth when stirred; pour over crust. Add nuts and remaining chips to reserved crumb mixture. Sprinkle over top.

Bake an additional 25 to 30 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars. Makes about 36 bars.

Enjoy!

By Country Gal | Posted in Chocolate, Cookies and Bars, Cooking and Food | Tagged , , | Comments (0)
Sep072009

Bible Time Line

By Country Gal | September 7, 2009 | Posted in Book Reviews, Home School | Tagged , , | Comments (2)

Nana Shirley has a great resource to share with us today!
Bible Time LineReading the Bible can be a bit confusing when you try to place all the stories in chronological order. There is a Bible published just for doing that.

As you study prophecy it is important to also know history in order to see how God’s Word is true and accurate. Our faith is increased as we see prophecy fulfilled.

We found a helpful tool, Bible Time Line, published by Rose Publishing, Inc. It is a laminated fold-out with the Bible time line from Genesis to Revelation featuring 300 key people and events in the Bible. Also printed along this time line is World History and Middle East History relating to the same time frame.

Papa Jim is teaching a Bible Study on Daniel. We found it interesting to note that Buddha and Confucius were both living at that same time. Were the “wise men” surrounding the kings teaching their beliefs?

As a student or teacher you can relate what you are studying in your World History class to what God is doing in the lives of His people at that time period.

We are thankful for men who take the time to relate dates and events of the past and put them in one place to simplify our study!

Until next time!

Nana Shirley

By Country Gal | Posted in Book Reviews, Home School | Tagged , , | Comments (2)