The Autodidact

Here's a hearty dish for a cold night. It's kind of like chili; a bit sweeter, but just as satisfying. You can either bake it in the oven, or throw it in the crock pot. Typically, I use the following: 1 can green beans 1 can wax beans 1 can kidney beans 1 can lima beans 1 31 oz can baked beans But, sometimes I can't find wax beans, or I'm just not in the mood for limas. You can use two cans of a 3 bean salad if you can't find wax beans. Also, you can use another can of the baked beans in lieu of two cans of any of the beans. It's up to you! Anyway, whip up: 1 t chili powder 1 16 oz can tomato sauce 1 6 oz can tomato paste 1/4 cup water 1 T dry mustard 1 cup brown sugar OR 1/2 cup maple syrup and a pinch of stevia powder Set aside and start browning 1 pound of bulk breakfast sausage Meanwhile, cut up: 2 onions 2-3 stalks celery When the sausage is done, combine all ingredients in a very large casserole dish, or the crock pot. Cook in th...

MERRY CHRISTMAS  FROM THE MARINOS  Here are a few items of interest (or not) from our family: Let's start with the middle child since they usually get ignored. Jared, 13, is now almost as tall as mom. He has discovered Jujitsu and plans on exploring that for the foreseeable future. He is excelling in swimming, ice skating and art, and would prefer to spend all his time drawing. He disappears for hours while exploring the nearby creek, and would live there, except for the lack of Mom's cooking. Margie, my other middle child (since she is the one who gets left behind too often) is 16. She is singing in two choirs, pursuing piano, participating in swim team, and drives herself in those areas as well as in academics. She spent the summer working full time at the city pool, life guarding and teaching. Her quick wit and intelligence serve her well. Edie, who could ably fill in as the oldest child, is 11. She loves swimming and ice skating, and d...

Here's a quick and simple meal for after church or a busy day. In a crock pot, place slices of a bell pepper and an onion in the bottom. Layer raw Italian sausage over the vegetables. Last, pour over the contents a jar of spaghetti sauce or a 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes, seasoned to taste with Italian seasonings and salt. Cook on high if you need this for after church, or you are in a hurry, for 3-4 hours. Cook on low if you are eating this for dinner for 6 hours or so. Serve on buns with a side of fresh baby carrots dipped in ranch dressing or a salad. Today, I had some corn on the cob that needed to be used and made for a lovely, colorful meal. \

Hey Newbies! You there, just starting out with your little ones! Yes, YOU! Having trouble teaching your 3 year old? Your 4 year old won’t sit still? Your 2 year old is fighting with you over school work? The 5 year old would rather be playing? Your 6 year old not even reading yet?? I have great news! This is normal! Your kids are OK. Kids are not meant for formal school work on a daily, consistent basis until they are about 8 years old. Notice I said “daily” and “consistent.” It’s so tempting to jump into formal schooling at the first sign our little ones express an interest in something. But then they lose interest and become frustrated with us for expecting them to conform to our notion of “school.” School is not natural. It is foreign to the wonderful, intricate mind and body of a child. It confounds them. They just want to learn, but too often we interpret that as a sign they are ready to sit still, hold a pencil and do formal schooling. But children are much more fl...

Here's an easy Italian dish that pleases the whole family. Prep time is not long, and you can do all of it, except for the baking, ahead of time. You will need: 3 chicken breasts 4 cups seasoned bread crumbs 3 eggs olive oil- up to a cup 1/2 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese 24-30 oz (or more if you want) of spaghetti sauce Cut 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts into strips with scissors. It's much easier to do this when the chicken is partially thawed. Whisk 3 eggs in a bowl, and pour about 2 cups of seasoned bread crumbs onto a plate. Have 2 more cups of crumbs ready to use as the old crumbs will get gummed up from the eggs. Just add crumbs as you need them. Pour about a quarter of a cup olive oil into a large skillet and heat on medium high. When your oil is hot, coat the chicken pieces with egg one at a time, and dredge through the crumbs. Place in pan and brown on one side, then turn over to brown on the other. You...

Stuffed Peppers are so simple that no recipe is really needed. But sometimes things are so simple, we forget about them! These can be whipped up in minutes but look like you fussed. They are truly comfort food on a cool evening, and are so easy.  For my crew, I cut off the tops of 14 Italian style peppers. I used about 2 pounds of Italian sausage. You can use bulk, or links (just remove the casing). You can use mild or spicy sausage. When my husband makes these, he mixes in Mozzarella cheese. Stuff the sausage in the peppers and bake at 350 or so for about 30-40 minutes. Keep an eye on them and test inside the largest pepper to make sure the sausage is fully cooked. Ready to pop in the oven. While they are baking, pull out some homemade  Italian bread  bread from the freezer, cook up some pasta and heat up some spaghetti or marinara sauce. Open a nice bottle of red wine. The peppers will brown and shrivel a bit, but they are delicious. Man...

The kids and I are studying South America this year for school, and I decided it would be fun to find traditional dishes from each country and cook as we work our way around the continent. This is a recipe that looked easy to make and used easy to find ingredients. For a large family, you will need: 3-4 pounds boneless chicken 16 ounces bacon 2 onions 6 garlic cloves 1 chili pepper 1 can tomato paste 4 t garam masala 10 allspice berries 6 T soy sauce 3 T brown sugar 2 cups chicken broth 2/3 cups coconut milk ! lg can of pork and beans 1 t salt 1 t black pepper 1/2 t nutmeg 1 T peanut oil celery leaves for garnish 1.Cut chicken into small pieces and season with the salt, pepper and nutmeg. Set aside. 2,Mince onions, chili pepper and garlic. Set aside. 3.Cut bacon into small pieces and cook. Drain and set aside. 4. In a large pot, heat the peanut oil and a tablespoon or so of the bacon drippings and cook the chicken. Cook only halfway. 5...