Cake Mix Cookies

This is such a cheater recipe... cookies really don't take that long to make, but cake mix cookies are so moist!  Also, I don't freak out so much about making them on short notice.  Thomas volunteered me to make cookies for AWANA and his work this week.

I had picked up some cake mixes on sale last month (also had a coupon or two!).  I want to make up some of my own cake mixes in a jar, but I haven't gotten around to making them yet.  Amy Bayliss had a 10 day series on Canning Jar ideas... and I love the idea of making up homemade mixes in canning jars to have them handy.  I really want to eat healthier, but I grew up cooking with convenience foods... and that is a hard habit to break.  This was a Betty Crocker recipe that I altered slightly... I actually made it slightly easier & more versatile.

Ingredients:

1 box (or canning jar) of any flavor cake mix
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs, beaten

6-12 ounces of chocolate chips, or other chips, or candy pieces (optional)

Directions:

Mix everything together & spoon onto cookie sheet (I usually do a dozen per sheet).  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 mins.  Edges should be brown, centers will be soft.  Cool 1 minute on pan, then move from cookie sheet to wire rack.

So, here are some ideas:

One year when we visited my cousin and her family, I used vanilla (or yellow, or white) cake mix and chocolate chips for one batch, the other batch I used a chocolate cake mix and swirled milk chocolate and peanut butter morsels.

For our homeschool co-op Holiday Party (we combine Thanksgiving & Christmas) I used a vanilla cake mix, chocolate chips, and crushed peppermint.

Right now I'm making plain vanilla (I think the kids we decorate these), plain chocolate (if they were for me, I'd add chocolate chips!), spice cake and cherry chip... each separately.  The family will take the vanilla and chocolate to AWANA & the spice cake and cherry chip cookies will go to work with hubby.

I think the spice cake would go great with butterscotch morsels, or reeces pieces... and chocolate goes good with almost anything.

A Few Things from May at our House

Our cat, Butter, decided to make a bed out of my paper shredding.

Ellie's turtle, Jamie, from the last class at Co-op.
We eventually set him free.  

My Mother's Day Flowers... all FREE!
The white ones were from Ellie's Sonshine Girls Tea Party.
The yellow one was from a charity banquet we attended.
The pink one was from Price Chopper, when I happened to pick up groceries on Mother's Day.
And the little plant, with buds that you can't really see, is from my Grandma.

This is Ellie's Creation Science notebook from Co-op.
She wanted a picture of all the decorations she put on there.

This is one of Wyatt's famous block towers.

This is my "Mother's Day" picture (I take one every year),
taken after the charity banquet where I got the white flowers.

Science Secrets

I'll be honest, Science was not my subject during most of my school years. I did enjoy Chemistry in high school and college, and the general science class I had to take in college (it covered history, astronomy, physics, seemed like everything). Anyway, I've said before that my kids love Science, so that is a challenge for me in homeschooling.

I've been blessed the last year and a half to assist my friend, Colleen, in the Science classes she teaches at our co-op. Science just comes naturally for her. She has given me lots of great ideas.

This last week at co-op, I assisted in the Jr. High/High School Anatomy class where she told the kids about laminin. If you aren't familiar with laminin, basically, it's the stuff that holds humans together. Do a search for "laminin". You can check out the pictures of laminin by clicking here. Laminin looks like a cross. She told the kids that although God wants us to believe in Him and take Him on faith, He leaves us evidence of His existence (sometimes) in the smallest places.

Co-op was last Friday, so all of that was still in my mind when the kids and I enjoyed a wonderful live online Science class Monday, Astonishing Atoms. The class was put on by Science Jim, through Currclick. This was a free class, but nonetheless full of content, so that you could get an idea of what to expect in a Science Jim class. In case you're interested, there is another free class on December 22! We signed up for this class a while back, but didn't receive our link to the class for some reason. This time we had no problems.

So, Science Jim was explaining that there are basically two things that everything is made up of: matter and energy...and they are basically the same thing (E=Mc2...thanks, Mr. Einstein!). Then he explains about atoms. Well, I learned about atoms in school, they have a proton, electron, and neutron; atomic number 1 has one of each. I never thought of this before, but my mind was in the right place thanks to Colleen, that an atom is a great example or way to understand the triun (trinity) of God. An atom, unimaginably tiny atom, has three parts to make up the whole atom: proton, neutron, and electron. Our God, unfathomably immense, has three parts to make up the whole: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. One of the kids in the class asked where atoms come from. Science Jim was very good to say that people have different beliefs about how things began (I appreciate this, rather than pushing your views on others, even if they might be the same), but that atoms have always been in existence, since the beginning. Also, atoms never "die" or go away, they are kind of recycled. Which I think is a good comparison, too. God has always been and He never really goes away. I love that.

Science Jim wanted to "blow our minds" with his figures. He did succeed in blowing minds at our house. When he explained how vast things would have to be to make a scale model of an atom where we could see the nucleus with our unaided eyes...wow! If you want to know what he told us, you should attend his class! I think this is a class that any age would enjoy (unless you've learned it all already).

Living History

Today was our last official field trip of the year for Co-op. We had a great turn out. Everyone who signed up was able to attend. We had six families.
This was the group (minus me).





We are so lucky to live near Kansas City. We went to Missouri Town 1855, which is a living history site in Jackson County. We had the place nearly to ourselves on a beautiful day! The sun was shining, the temperature was nearly 60 degrees, with a brisk breeze.

The kids petted oxen and horses, learned about life in 1855, loved visiting the blacksmith, all took a turn feeding chickens, and sawing firewood! They answered and asked lots of questions. They also all began their Kansas City Passport to Adventure for 2009.

My hubby was able to join us for this field trip and we got some priceless pictures. Ellie and I bought bonnets. We wanted them last year when we went, but didn't get them. I totally love wearing the bonnet! The bonnet is better than sunglasses, and it keeps your ears warm from the cold breeze. Plus, I enjoy the Caroline Ingalls look (too bad I wasn't wearing a dress). :)

On the way home, the kids were going on about how they'd like to live Pioneer style. They want to be self sufficient: dig a well, have our own animals, grow our own food, no electricity, etc... even sawing our firewood! The only idea they didn't like was giving up some of their toys. We'll see how that goes. The husband and I have talked about going Amish... (not actually becoming Amish, but living Amish-style: horse and buggy, farming, no modern amenities).

Russian Chicken Soup

We belong to a wonderful Homeschool Co-op where I teach Jr. High PE and co-teach Food Class. Our Co-op meets once a month to study a different foreign country, sort of unit study style. So, each class focuses on a different aspect of the country: Food, PE, Science, Art, and Social Studies. Food Class can be challenging...finding recipes that will entice the kids to try new and different foods, trying new cooking techniques, and finding exotic ingredients. I have throughly enjoyed learning though.

Some of the recipes I've made for Co-op have became family favorites. The most requested of all has to be Chicken Soup with Dumplings from Russia. The recipe has even been requested by those outside Co-op when they've witnessed us eating it at lunch (including the husbands work). Since food is definitely one of the basics of life, I decided I would put some of our favorite family recipes on the blog. I can't think of a better way to save and share the yummy recipes. So, I'm starting with the Russian Chicken Soup. I'll print the original & my modified version.

Chicken Soup with Dumplings

DUMPLINGS
1 jumbo egg
3 ½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill (optional)

SOUP
5 cups Chicken Stock, or canned broth
2 medium-size boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
8 baby carrots, peeled
1 large rib celery, sliced
1 large fresh, ripe tomato, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped
Finely minced scallion (green onion) for garnish
Finely chopped fresh dill for garnish

1 To make the dumplings, break the egg into a small bowl, then add the flour salt, pepper, and dill, if desired, and beat with a fork until smooth. Set the dumpling mixture aside.
2 In a soup pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil, then add the potatoes, carrots, and celery. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the vegetables are tender, for 15 minutes.
3 Dip a teaspoon into cold water, scoop up about ½ teaspoon of the dumpling mixture and lower it carefully in to the simmering soup. Repeat with the rest of the mixture, dipping your spoon into cold water before you make each dumpling. You should have about 8 to 10 dumplings.
4 Add the tomato, increase the heat to medium low, and cook until the dumplings rise to the surface, 5 to 7 minutes.
5 Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with scallion and dill, and serve.

Serves 4 generously

Russian Chicken Soup with Dumplings Misty Style

DUMPLINGS
1 jumbo egg
3 ½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill (optional-I’ve also used a country herb mix)

SOUP
5 cups Chicken Stock, or canned broth ( I use one carton, plus a ½-3/4 cup of water or broth from the chicken)
2 medium-size boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
8 baby carrots, peeled (or a couple large carrots-peeled and shredded)
1 large rib celery, sliced (optional)
1 large fresh, ripe tomato, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped (or, one can organic diced tomatoes)
Finely minced scallion (green onion) for garnish (optional)
Finely chopped fresh dill for garnish

1 To make the dumplings, break the egg into a small bowl, then add the flour salt, pepper, and dill, if desired, and beat with a fork until smooth. Set the dumpling mixture aside.
2 In a soup pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil, then add the potatoes, carrots, and celery. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the vegetables are tender, for 15 minutes.
3 Dip a teaspoon into cold water, scoop up about ½ teaspoon of the dumpling mixture and lower it carefully in to the simmering soup. Repeat with the rest of the mixture, dipping your spoon into cold water before you make each dumpling. You should have about 8 to 10 dumplings.
4 Add the tomato, increase the heat to medium low, and cook until the dumplings rise to the surface, 5 to 7 minutes.
5 Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with scallion and dill, and serve.

Serves 4 generously

To make heartier, I slow cook a whole chicken, then skin & pull the meat off the bone, tear up a bit & add at the very end (when everything else is done). In Russia, chicken is too expensive to use like this. They would make the food last by making this with the chicken’s broth.

You do not have to add the green onion or dill, it is yummy either way.

Also, I usually triple or quadruple the dumplings, cuz my daughter really loves dumplings.

I don’t always use salt, either, you don’t need it. There is a lot of flavor in the rest of the ingredients. Oh, and Rachel Rays Chicken Stock has the best flavor (so says my husband & I do really like the flavor).