Foodie Friday: Pancake Mix

Breakfast for supper is a common occurrence around the Bowl of Cherry House. It is easy and I usually have everything that I need on hand to whip it up. I have made from-scratch pancakes in the past, but I normally use Bisquick. (After all, the point of this dinner is to be quick and easy.) However, I recently mixed up a batch of Brown Eyed Baker's pancake mix and I am a convert. Her buttermilk pancakes are so good I eat them without anything on them. (Although occasionally some jam or peanut butter may find its way to a few.) It does take a little more work than the Bisquick method, but let me assure you that it is totally worth it. (Being that the original recipe is from Alton Brown, is there any wonder why?)

Mix Ingredients:

-6 c flour

-1 1/2 t baking soda

-3 t baking powder

-1 T salt

-2 T sugar

Mix Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a lided container. Shake to mix. Use within 3 months.

Pancake Ingredients:

-2 eggs, separated

-2 c. buttermilk (and don't forget that you can make your own buttermilk with vinegar or lemon juice)

-4 T melted butter

-2 c pancake mix

Pancake Directions:

-Heat an electric griddle or frying pan to 350 degrees and preheat oven to warm.

-Whisk together the egg whites and the buttermilk in a small bowl. Whisk the egg yolks with the melted butter.

-Combine the buttermilk mixture and the butter mixture together in a large bowl and whisk until thoroughly combined.

-Pour the liquid ingredients on top of the pancake mix. Whisk together until just combined. (Don't worry about lumps.)

-Pour batter onto griddle. Turn when the pancakes start to bubble. Cook another two to three minutes. Wrap in towel and place in warm oven until ready to eat.

Speedy Delivery

I have been amazed at the speed with which our online orders have been arriving here. We ordered something from Amazon Thursday night and something from a hardware store Saturday. Both packages arrived on Monday! That was with standard shipping. I received shipping confirmation on an order I placed with JoAnn Fabrics yesterday morning. When I clicked on the link it said that it was in town and out for delivery. By 3 p.m. it was spread out on my living room floor!!

The postal service, UPS, and Fed Ex are doing Mr. McFeely proud, I tell you!

Techno Menu

I haven't been very good about menu planning lately. I have just been winging it. Sometimes it is just nice to take a break. I decided with the heckticness (is that a word?) of December it would be good to get back on the wagon. I was going to just type in the meals on a calendar on the computer and then print it out, when it dawned on me. If I was getting my recipes off the internet I could link the recipe to its day. That way when I need it, bam, there it is. We will see how it works out. There of course are some recipes that aren't online, but that isn't a big deal. Most of those for this month I know what I am doing without a recipe. I also added my cookie recipes to the bottom so that I have those where I can find them when it is time to find them.
While I was on the computer, I typed up the grocery list by category. I know that it may seem like lots of work, but I am hoping that it will really save time in the long run. We shall see.

Work It

When one has a reindeer hat, one must learn to model said hat with fierceness.

"Is this the look that you are going for, mom?"

"How about totally sweet?"

"Here is the money shot!"

"Enough already! You got your picture, what more do you want from me?"

CYO: Baby Shoes

I never thought that I would be one of those moms. I always thought that I would be practical and ultimately level-headed. But alas, I have become what I thought I would not. I am a mom who loves to play dress-up with her baby. I have way to much fun buying and putting together fun outfits for Little Peachy. Luckily for me and our bank account, I haven't gone completely off the deep end. I try not to spend too much money on outfits that will only be worn for a few months and will most likely end up with spit-up and poop on them. This means that I have to get creative in my clothes gathering. I have had very good luck through garage sales and Craigslist. It feels good to get a pair of jeans for $1 that would have originally cost 20 times that amount. I have also been getting into crafting clothing and accessories for Peachy. My latest obsession is in the footwear department. (Those of you who know me well, are not all that surprised by this.) I have bought a few pairs of Peachy's shoes from Target, but otherwise they have all come from garage sales and most recently I have made them. It is so much fun taking a basic pattern and adapting it to look completely different.

The first pair of shoes I made were for Peachy's Halloween costume. When I found this pattern on Etsy at Precious Patterns I knew her costume would not be complete without them.

Since they had a deal of buy two patterns, get one free at the time, I couldn't resist and ordered this pattern as well.

On the next pair, I decided to use the pattern as a suggestion and create my own pair.

(And yes the flower is removable. You know, in case it doesn't match her outfit.)

I can't wait until I find the time to make some more!!