Yumm Sauce Recipe

I was first introduced to this by my best friend Megan while we lived post college in our small two bedroom apartment, single, broke and hungry. Megan went to college in Eugene, Oregon where they had a joint called Cafe Yumm, which served a variety of vegan meals (and meat if you dared), her favorite being the chicken Yumm bowl.

After a year of marriage I visited my cousin in Eugene, Oregon and had the sheer joy to step into one.  Angels sang as I purchased my first jar of Yumm sauce. I brought it back to hubby for him to enjoy his first bowl of Yumm! He says now after two years of marriage this is one of his favorite meals. Thus, I had to find a recipe for the sauce because driving to Oregon to purchase twelve dollar Yumm sauce was out of the question.

This is the closest recipe to the real thing I've ever found.

 

Yumm Sauce:

(kudos to this website)

 

½  cup canola oil

½ cup slivered almonds (whole are fine too)

1/3 cup nutritional yeast
½ cup cooked garbanzo beans
¼ cup cooked soybeans
½ cup water
½ c lemon juice
2-3 garlic cloves
½ tsp salt
1 tsp   curry  powder
½ tsp dried basil
1/8    tsp ascorbic acid
Dashes of Paprika

Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and blender until smooth. Mine was pretty thick so I added a little more water to make it easier to pour. It was the consistency of peanut butter, but after adding water it resembled ranch dressing.

This sauce is ideally used in a Yumm bowl but it can be used on salad, meat, etc. And yes, those are my paw prints in the sauce!

What is in a Yumm bowl you might ask? Well, a variety of things. The base of the bowl is brown or white rice. Then you can add any off the following to your bowl and top it with Yumm sauce or mix it in the rice beforehand.

black beans
kidney beans
avocados
tomatoes
salsa
black olives
shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream
chicken
tofu
cilantro

My favorite combination is white rice, black beans, tomatoes, grilled chicken, sour cream, cheddar cheese, cilantro, avocados topped with some Yumm sauce and cracked pepper and sometimes a dash of kosher salt. Pardon the expression...Yum ;)
 

 

 

Christmas Decor for Dollars

I love Christmas! I love the colors, the cookies, the parties, the people, the crafts, the cards and the reason for the season. I LOVE IT ALL! Well, almost all of it. Maybe the one thing that can be hard to swallow is the effect it has on my budget. Christmas can be expensive. But, after rekindling an old fling that had been long forgotten I am boldly stepping forth and confessing my new passion for an old love, yes, the Dollar Store.

Decorate your house for less than 25 dollars! Are you kidding? It can be done! Have faith friends! Here's how...

Festive front door wreath: This project was cake. I bought two fake floral arrangements. I formed one stem into a loop in order to hang it from the door. The other one I hung a little lower than the first and bent it's stem around the bottom of the first ones loop. I then attached red glitter bulbs to the arrangement by tying them to the arrangement stem using the string that came with the bulbs (see pictures below). Lastly, I attached a nice bow to the top of the arrangement (compliment of Micheal's ribbon sale)  and you're done!

TOTAL COST: $3.00



House wreaths: I bought green garland and created a wreath by looping it twice to give it more thickness and then added a Dollar Store bow. Attach to your house using scrap booking foam tape  (also purchased at the Dollar Store ).

 

Eave decor: I love lights, but I have a hard time buying things when I know they are going to be discounted disturbingly low in the matter of weeks, so, I'm waiting. But, I found a beautiful way to decorate the house so that it shines bright even in daylight. With a few sparkly ornaments and some green garland I made the place sparkle!

 

 

 

All this with just some of this...

 

 

and of course a special thanks to my little helper...

 

 

Miss Juliet Love!

 



Peanut Butter Balls

These are Jon's favorite! Last year I had to make two batches, one to give away to neighbors, family and friends and one batch just for his personal consumption. I have to admit they are pretty good. Enjoy this traditional favorite.

Peanut Butter Balls

2 cups of powdered sugar

1/4 cup of butter

1 cup of chunky peanut butter

1 cup of chopped walnuts

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1 package of semi sweet chocolate chips

 

Mix all the above ingredients together except the chocolate chips. It may appear to be slightly crumbly. This is normal.

 

Melt chocolate chips in a bowl in the microwave (probably don't want it to be metal). I did increments of 1 minute stirring in between. It took a total of 3 minutes to melt. You can also use a double boiler if you would like to be fancy about it. Also, if you would like to add paraffin to your chocolate this will help them set up (harden) faster.

 

 

Now roll you peanut butter mixture into little balls. Roll them to be about the size of a small bouncy ball ( I know, odd reference). Then dip the balls using a spoon into the melted chocolate. Roll the peanut butter ball against the side of the bowl with the spoon ensuring the entire thing is coated with chocolate. Now, remove the ball from the chocolate bowl and place on wax or parchment paper. If you would like, feel free to top them with something fun. To half the batch I added some white chocolate peppermint candies. Now that they're pretty let them sit for an hour to become hardened. Then, eat your heart out!

 

 

Like this recipe? Try my other holiday favorites :) like SANTA THUMBPRINTS, BETTY CROCKER LEMON BARS, or BRE'S CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES!

 

Santa Thumprints

We meet again for my favorite holiday cookie of  them all...the Santa Thumbprints! I love these guys. They are like an oatmeal cookies (my favorite kind) rolled in chopped walnuts (I like those too) and filled with jam (what a combination).

Santa Thumbprints

 

1 1/2 cups of butter Crisco (I used 3/4 cup of butter and 3/4 cup of shortening)

1 cup of firmly packed brown sugar

1 egg

1 tablespoon of vanilla

2 1/2 cups of uncooked oats

2 cups of flour

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 cup of chopped nuts (I used walnuts)

2/3 cup of fruit preserve

 

Heat oven to 350f. In a large bowl cream together the Crisco and brown sugar.

 

 

Then add the egg, vanilla and salt.

 

 

 Once combined add the flour and oatmeal. It will be easier if you add it in parts instead of adding it all and trying to stir it all at once. It can get a little messy.

 

 

Roll into small balls. They rise a little, but not much. Put the chopped walnuts in bowl. Roll the balls into the chopped walnuts and place on a cookie sheet . Put a piece of parchment paper on the cookie sheet. This will save you some scrubbing and speed up your time between batches. Once cookies are on the sheet press down with your thumb in the middle of each ball making a crater (I should of took a photo). Now fill the crater with fruit preserve.

 

 

Bake for 12-15 minutes (mine took 14 minutes)

As a little girl we would go blackberry picking every summer. Our freezer would be full of bags of frozen blackberries and on special occasions we would even make blackberry jam. If you would really like to make these special try using some homemade jam. Those years we used homemade blackberry jam I couldn't keep my paws away from them.

Love these? Try some other holiday goodies like Bre's chocolate chip cookies, Betty Crocker lemon bars or peanut butter balls.

Betty Crocker Lemon Bars

I had to call my mom for backup on this one. When I originally wrote the recipe I did it shorthand so I wouldn't have to write so much. The only problem is now I don't understand half of it, but after a simple phone call we are back in business.

Betty Crocker Lemon Bars (twist)

 

1 egg

1/3 cup butter

1 package of lemon cake mix

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

1 cup of granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1 tsp of grated lemon peel

1/2 cup of lemon juice

* and of course a little bit of love :)

 

 

Heat oven to 350f. Mix together 1 egg, butter and lemon cake mix until crumbly. Pour half into an ungreased 9x13 pan. Lightly pat down and put into the oven for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Reserve the other half for later :)

 

Beat together 2 eggs, sugar, baking powder, salt, lemon peel and juice until fluffy. Once the first mixture is done cooking remove from the oven and pour the wet batter into the pan. Then, top with the crumble mixture we reserved in the beginning. Now place back into the oven and allow to cook for 15-20 minutes.

 

Once done sift with powdered sugar and cut into cubes. These will be very soft and chewy. These are from the kitchen of my mom, Lacy McBride who got the recipe from her mom, Elain Gibbins.

Bre's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Today is our wild card folks! This recipe is from Bre's kitchen, a dear friend from college. I have to be honest. It has been over a year since I have talked to her. Have you ever noticed whenever someone seems to cross your mind you somehow connect with them. Just today I recieved a facebook from her. What a joy it was to receive. Without further explantion, here it is, Bre's best!

Bre's Chocolate Chip Cookies:

 

2 sticks of butter

3/4 cups of brown sugar

3/4 cups of white sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp of vanilla

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

2 1/2 cups of flour

1 bag of chocolate chips (2 cups)

Heat oven to 375 F (if you have stoneware to cook with put it in the oven now)

Cream together butter, vanilla, eggs and sugars. Sift together salt, soda and flour. Add to wet ingredients in three parts. It will make the stirring process a whole lot easier and a lot less messy. Once well combined add chips and stir.

Drop (2 tablespoon sized) balls onto the cookie sheet using your hands or a spoon. These will spread so make sure they are two inches apart. They will take 8-10 minutes to cook. Mine were perfect at 9 minutes. They will be thin. If you prefer them to be thicker you can add more flour.

Enjoy!

A Cookie a Day Keeps the Sweet Tooth at Bay

Stay faithful yee warriors of wee ones! I had to keep reminding myself of this daily during the month of November. Poor baby girl is teething once again and her sleep is very disrupted which means Momma Bear's (yes, Megan and Ashley I did say it this time) sleep is very disrupted. I feel like I've been transported back into college and lived the dreaded finals week over 4 times in a row.

But, I have my fingers crossed that things are getting better. I'm encouraged to be here again with you and find refuge in sharing the things in life that make me tick like good food, crafty projects, great people and Jesus.

The theme for this week, " A cookie a day keeps the sweet tooth at bay" or at least some of us would like to think so :) This week I will be drummin' up some of my families Christmas favorites. Fond memories flood my senses when I smell any one of these tasty treats brewin'. For kicks I threw in one wild card, a recipe I received from a dear friend in college. Her mom was a fabulous baker and she definitely passed down the talent to her sweet daughter.

Betty Crocker Lemon Bars
Santa Thumbprints
Peanut Butter Balls
Bre's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Stick with me. This week will be fabulous as we get ready for the holiday season and I share a treat a day from my families kitchen a bestow it upon yours.

Biscuits and Gravy

My Gpa loves biscuits and gravy! In fact, he now has serious health problems partly because of it. The doctor has even had to limit his biscuits and gravy consumption. But, after making this delectable dish for over 50+ my Grandma has become one mean biscuit and gravy makin' machine.

I've rarely eaten a bad biscuit. So, simplicity is best. Buy the Grands biscuits if you like or feel free to make them from a Bisquick box, either way I think they're great. The real magic is in the gravy :)

Biscuits and Gravy:

serving: up to you

 

ingredients:

milk

flour

bacon

pepper

salt

directions:

Start by cooking bacon in a skillet. Once bacon has been cooked crispy set aside on a plate lined with napkins. Allow to cool and then roughly chop.

 

 

Leave grease in the pan and set to medium heat, add about a 1/4 cup of milk and whisk continuously. While whisking attempt to scrap all those bacon morsels off the bottom of the pan.

 

Once milk has become and brownish color and looks like it's thickening take a spoonful of flour and sprinkle over the milk mixture, continuing to whisk (if you don't have a whisk my grandmother always used a fork). Continue adding flour one spoonful at a time until you've contributed 3-4 spoonfuls. Stir and allow to thicken.

 

 

Sprinkle in some pepper and salt (personally I don't add salt because I think the bacon is salty enough). Once it begins to thicken like gravy add some more milk, 1/4-1/2 cup is fine. Milk may seem to boil when added to mixture. This is normal. Keep stirring.

 

 

You want to continue alternating milk and flour until you have the desired amount of gravy. Make sure you give each step time to brown. By this I mean allow milk to brown on the bottom of the pan for a few seconds and then whisk or turn heat up higher so that it bubbles and cooks quickly. The browning is what allows for the great flavor.

 

 

 

Now, turn off heat and add bacon to mixture. Stir and serve with biscuits, but don't forget the butter, jam and honey.

 

 

My challenge is for you to try biscuits and gravy with jam. My favorite is blackberry. It's so good. Just like Gpa has it!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's such a disappointment when you labor in the kitchen making chocolate chip cookies and they come out like hard, brown, chocolate chunk Frisbees. Here's a fool proof recipe for chocolate chip cookies that won't leave you down, depressed, and defeated, face first in leftover cookie batter.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

serves: 7 dozen 2 inch cookies

 

ingredients:

2 3/4 cups of flour

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon of salt

1 cup butter, softened (not melted)

3/4 cups of granulated sugar

3/4 cups of packed brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon of vanilla

2 cups of chocolate chips (this usually means 1 bag)

optional:

1 cup of chopped walnuts (I split the dough in half and added 1/4 cups to one half for variety)

directions:

 

Preheat oven to 375 F

In a small bowl add flour, baking soda, salt. Now, set aside.

In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugars. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until smooth.

 

 

Gradually add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture until combined. Stir in chips...

 

 

 and walnuts (if desired)

 

 

Roll into small balls and lay on a cookies sheet, spaced apart. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Mine took exactly 9 minutes.

 

 

Cool then enjoy!

 

 

*If you would like to save some cookies for later pull out some wax paper and a one gallon bag. Roll the cookie dough into logs on the wax paper (short enough to fit into the one gallon bag). On the outside of the bag write the contents, cook temp and time needed to cook. Throw the bag in the freezer for later. When you're ready for another snack cut the logs like you would store bought cookies an enjoy! (This was a great idea passed down from a friend of a friend)

 

This recipe was adapted from the one on the Ghiradelli's Chocolate Chip bag

Loving well...

I’m trying to learn how to love people well. And how does that look tangibly played out in my life. How to love my husband well, my friend well, my daughter well, my family well and complete strangers. I’ve tried to establish practices on how to do this.

I write these as personal reminders more than anything else. I want to be better. to put those around me at ease. This list serves as a conscious reminder that I know better and serves as accountability since it's been put to ink and sent out into public terrain.

Husband(or wife):

LOVE HIM BEYOND HIS MISTAKES: Someone said to me early on in my marriage that a spouse can cause the greatest joy and worst pain. I'm finding this to be true. Pain is inevitable when you love someone as madly as you do a spouse. If a spouse wounds you (which will happen with time) deal with it, forgive them, move on and don't bring it up again. It's searing pain to the heart when you hurt your spouse and you've dealt with the problem and then they bring up the subject as ammunition against you. Don't do it!

SEX: is important. I remember having a serious conversation as a young teen with my dad about marriage. I told my dad that sex was a benefit to marriage. He stopped me dead in my tracks by saying it was very important and one the foundations in marriage. So true! Be available for sex. Girls you may not be in the mood, you're tired, it's late and you have to get early. Men take the word "no" more personally than we might expect. So, indulge him. Don't be a martyr. Have fun and enjoy it!

COOK: The way to a man's heart is through is stomach. This is a funny phrase, but in ways it holds so much truth. My husband appreciated it so much when I cook him dinner and I even enjoy doing it.

GO TO BED AND WAKE UP TOGETHER: Since the morning after we were married I have woken up and helped my husband get ready for work. At times this has meant getting up at 6:15am and other times 4:15AM! Sometimes it's with reluctance after having just been up two hours earlier feeding the baby, but it allows us to be on the same page day in and day out.

MAKE HIS LUNCH: This came as a surprise to me. A few weeks ago my husband said to me "Thank you for still making my lunch". I was taken back a little. Then he elaborated, "I just figured you would one day stop and have me do it and I just really appreciate that you still make it." I know he's capable of doing it himself, but if it's means so much to him it makes me excited to bless him in that way. Plus you can always give him a little shock by sneaking something a sexy little something inside with a note that makes his heart race with expectation to come home :)
 

Baby(kids):

DO THE MONOTONOUS: Mothers are needed even in the medial tasks, but that’s what counts. As the book "10 Habits of Healthy Mothers" says even wiping peas off the floor is important. Try to enjoy the things you have to do for your kids.

LET THEM BE THEM: You had your glory days. Allow them to develop into who they are. Don’t push them towards your regrets.

LOVE THEM OUT LOUD: We women should know this better than anyone else. We know our husbands love us. They do things to show us they love us, but that's not enough. We need to here those three precious words "I love you" and so do your kids!

FRIENDS:

LOVE THEM ENOUGH TO TELL THE TRUTH: I know some friendships don’t work this way. Then you have to ask yourself, is this really a true friendship or some self serving relationship where the other person can stay within the confines of what they feel is comfortable without any real input from the people who care. I want friendships that change me. Friendships that mold me into a better person. I want friendships that challenge me. In the same sense when your girlfriend says, “does this make my butt look big?” use some tact.

REMEMBER SPECIAL EVENTS: Birthdays are a must. A lot of people say birthdays aren’t really a big thing for them. I am one of them. The truth is I do want people to acknowledge that they know it’s my birthday. I'm speaking to the choir on this one. I've tried to be much better with this on Facebook. Baby steps people. Baby steps! Also, remember to ask about the big test or a job interview that your friend mentioned.

CONNECT REGULARLY: We can’t all be blessed and live in the same town as our friends. So, make a point to say hi. There are so many forms of social media and for all types of schedules. It takes seconds to email, Facebook or text someone. When they’re on your mind buzz them an email and let them know. “Hey Chelse, just thinking about you. Hope you are doing well. I love you, em”

PUT THE PHONE AWAY: It's rude. Enough said!

STRANGERS:

SMILE: says a thousand word. It can make or break a day. Have you ever walked by someone and they smile all teeth holding nothing back. It’s not very often I get a smile like this from a total stranger. It’s usually the pursed lips, half grin partial head nod. Like, “hey” I’m gonna acknowledge you, but I’m going to allow just enough of a social buffer in the case you don’t reciprocate. Rejection hurts. And it’s hard not to feel rejected when you smile at a stranger and they don’t reciprocate. Accept it. Be joyful. Smile regardless.  


 


 

How to make baby food

This is so easy I'm doing it more! At first the idea of making my own baby food was slightly overwhelming, but once I tried it I actually had fun.

I used apples this time, but you can use a variety of different fruits and vegetables. Some suggestions would be sweet potatoes, carrots or pears. These are typically safe for babies first foods. The professionals say introduce new foods to baby one at a time and allow 3 days before you try the next food. This makes it easier to identify allergies.

 

How to make baby food:

 

Any type of apples will do. I did two different kinds. First wash the apples and then peel them. Want to learn how check out my post "How to peel an apple". Cut apples into chunks. Quarter each apple. Cut out the core and then cut each quarter in half. This should give you 8 chunks per apple.

 

 

 

Put apples in a pot. Add a cup of water for every 4 pounds of apples. I did a half recipe and only used 1/2 cup of water. Now sprinkle a small amount of cinnamon. You don't need much. Bring to boil then bring temperature to low and allow to simmer for 30 minutes.

Allow this to cool(side note: if you don't the top of your blender will pop off and make a huge mess. Don't believe me..try it!). To speed up the process pour contents in a bowl and put into the fridge. Once cooled add contents into a blender, food processor, bullet etc. Add in sections. I added mine in three parts.

 

 

I grabbed my little test monkey to see how it turned out. From the looks of it I'd say it's a hit!

 

 

For storage pour applesauce into an ice tray. My half recipe filled two ice trays. Freeze them. Once they are frozen, remove them from the ice trays and put them into a plastic bag. Label with contents and date.

 

 

Recipe altered from SmittenKitchen