So, I have been trying really hard to figure out all this coupon clipping/sale shopping deal. Every once in a while I have a somewhat good shoping trip and it gets me excited. But, believe me, I have a LONG ways to go before I'd call myself a pro.
I had a coupon for almost each one of thesef these items and spent $20.55 for everything shown below and saved a total of $47.75. Pretty Good eh? Now if I could just have this happen every time I go to the grocery store...
..and I did it almost all by myself.
I was going to post Girls Camp pictures today but Gary needed the camera for work today and those pictures are not yet on the computer. So, I thought I'd share with you my thoughts I had last night as I was making dinner about how this monster evolved.
But first, let me start with this. Ever since I can remember, I've never liked pancakes or waffles. No offense to the mother, but they were just never really all that good. My mom used Bisquick or some kind of premade mix...doesn't everyone? Well, ours never turned out, the waffles split in half when we opened the waffle maker which A) created an ugly waffle and who wants to eat an ugly messed up waffle? B) created a mess, so by then, you're a bit frustrated and don't feel like eating it anyways. C) They still never tasted all that great to begin with anyhow. So, I just stopped eating them all together.
I share that as proof that I didn't ENTIRELY create this monster I've become. It's always been in me...even before I knew any different.
Fast forward a few (quite a few) years. Gary and I are dating and make a trip down to Arizona to get away and visit his Brother and Sister who both lived there with their families. One morning, his sister made pancakes. Inside I start to worry just a little bit. You know why...I don't like them! PLUS, this was the first time I had met his family. First impressions are everything you know! I decided (as anyone would) to eat them anyways. Well, guess what? I LOVED them! So, what was so different about these pancakes than the ones I'd grown up hating? For starters, I learned that these pancakes were made from scratch. No boxed mix anything...and second, the syrup, home made too. Sorry Mrs. Butterworth-lessness. None of you this time! Absolutely DIVINE!
This has created a very big problem for me (kind of like my pen problem). I like all things homemade. Bread, Oatmeal, Pancakes, Syrup, Waffles, Cakes, Muffins, etc. you name it...it makes a bit more work for me, but it's SO SO SO much more worth it. Except, that now I'm sort of obsessed with it. For example, Girls Camp...I offered to bring the pancake mix JUST so I would know that it was home made and not that Krusties yucky stuff from Costco. More times than not, I will go without than even TRY to eat any sort of pre-mix breakfast.
Recently, the Elders Quorum had the duty of cooking breakfast for the Ward Fathers and Sons outing. Gary got put in charge of the pancakes (rumors had spread through the ward about the Buttermilk Pancakes). When the time got close, Gary decided he'd just go to Costco and buy some Krusties instead of going to the trouble. Oh no! Trouble or not, I would have none of that. I wasn't even going to be there to eat any, but I couldn't stand the thought of MY husband making Krusties pancakes! So, I made some zip lock bags of the pancake mix and sent him away with the liquids to add to it...Problem Solved. (I think I might be a tiny bit obsessed)
Near the end of July we're going on a backpacking trip with the Young Women and I'm already dying because the menu is planned the menu and it's instant oatmeal for breakfast (understandably since we do need to pack light) and I don't know if I'll be able to force feed myself that stuff! Yikes! - It's the same issue with food storage. I know some of that stuff is great stuff to have around in an emergency, but I'm pretty sure that even an emergency would not get me to eat Krusties pancakes or instant oatmeal. Issues!
With that rant...I leave you with a few awesome recipes...try them and you'll become just like me! And then we can blog about it together! :)
Buttermilk Pancakes
3 Eggs
1 2/3 C. Buttermilk
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 1/2 C. Flour
1 Tbs. Sugar
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Salt
3 Tbs. soft Butter
Separate egg yolks from whites. Beat egg whites until soft peaks. In another bowl, beat yolks, then add buttermilk and baking soda. Mix together then add remaining ingredients and mix. Fold in egg whites. Cook on griddle until light brown.
Not to be eaten without:
Buttermilk Syrup: (I've tried many recipes out there, THIS is the best)
1 C. Sugar
2/3 C. Buttermilk
1/2 C. Butter
1/4 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Vanilla
Over medium heat, melt butter & sugar. Once melted and sugar is dissolved, add buttermilk. When it begins to boil, remove from heat & add the rest of the ingredients. (Use a bigger pot because when you add the baking soda, it bubbles up quite a bit)
Or, if you prefer to make normal home made maple syrup. Just go to the grocery and find the isle with the Vanilla flavorings and such. Pick up your self a bottle of Mapleine - Imitation Maple Flavor. Directions are on the box. Once you try it, you'll never go back! Pretty sure it's MUCH cheaper than buying that gross store bought stuff anyhow! :)
Crepes:
1 C. Flour
2 Eggs
1/2 C. Milk
1/2 C. Water
1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. butter, melted
1/2 C. sugar (or less if you prefer)
Blend all ingredients in a blender for 30-60 seconds...then go at it! Don't forget all those delicious toppings!
Peggy's Bread (My Mother In-Law is Peggy. I hope I'm not sharing some secret family bread recipe! Gary and I LOVE this bread)
Mix together for 30 seconds:
3 C. Flour
1/2 C. Sugar
3 tsp. Salt
1/3 C. oil
3 C. warm water (110-115)
Add:
2 Tbs. yeast and then mix for another 30 seconds
Add:
4 C. Flour - knead (or mix) for 6-8 minutes (You might need more flour. I do at this high altitude)
Put in 3-4 greased bread pans. Let rise 1 1/2-2 hours. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. After baked butter the tops and remove from pans to let cool.
Gary and I decided to get adventurous and go hiking on Memorial Day. We had heard that back in 1955 there was a TWA Plane that crashed right into the side of the mountain killing everyone on the plane...and as a memorial to them, they left all the plane pieces up there. Well, we had also heard that it is very difficult to find and that you basically need a GPS unit to find it. So, we talked to all the major hikers at church on Sunday and they tried to explain to us where to go and how to find this plane wreck (about a 7 mile round trip hike). I started getting a little nervous about attempting to do this without any guide or help...but Gary was too excited for me to be a party pooper about the whole thing. And then it occurred to me that my running GPS watch just might be able to help us out! So, after church we hurried home to see if we could put way points into my watch...low and behold, you CAN! Oh man, now I love my watch even more than I did before! There is a hiking sight on line that gave us about 5 points that would help us to find our way up to the plane wreck. My watch is AWESOME! It took us right there...if only it could have carried me down the mountain, now THAT would have been fabulous!
So, basically we hiked up 4000 feet and all day long...uh, that's a lot of elevation don't you think? Well, the worst part was actually the muscles I used coming DOWN the mountain. Literally, the next two days, I couldn't even get myself out of bed. But, it was really neat to go up there and see everything. And I took pictures so you don't have to hike up there yourselves! :)
THEN, just at Girls Camp this past week, a lady was telling me that she and her family basically did that same hike (but skipped a turn off) and went ALL the way up the mountain...and then rode the tram down. I guess this is a little bit tougher than what we did...well, it's like nine miles. But I really liked that idea of riding the tram down...I think we'll try that one this summer!
And here we are at the baseball game.
She's such a little cheerleader...just like her momma!
Ironically, one of Gary's friends, Skylar and his wife just happened to be at the game too so we had a chance to see them! That was fun!
The next morning we all (well, MOST of us...some chose to sleep in) got up super early and drove back to the zoo and ran in the "Walk in the Wild" 5K run/walk. We had a blast! My Dad and Mom walked Austin in the stroller and took pictures of us while we ran. I was almost wishing I had my camera during my run because ALL the animals were out and active TOTALLY opposite of what they were doing when we actually went to the Zoo a few days earlier (we couldn't even SEE half of the animals because they were hiding in the shade somewhere)
Aparently Gary and I ran the race so fast my Dad never saw us finish...so here we are after we finished.
We thought this one was kind-a cool. We all got pedometers with our registration for the race...so some decided to wear them while they ran...after the race we were all comparing our number of steps and Dallin and Lincoln's steps were ONE apart. How in the world?!?
