We’ve got more snow today, though my boys were quite disappointed that the 6″ or so only rated a delay for school, instead of a day off. I’ve been absolutely freezing all day, so undertook to warm myself with help from the oven. What better way to warm up than with some potato soup?

Smashed Potato Soup

adapted from Cooking Light;  Serves 6

The final pattern for our Christmas {Crafting} adventures is a new one, Katie Jayne. I’ve been wearing mine pretty much every day, none stop since Christmas. It’s a comfy, perfectly slouchy toque that covers even the worst bad-hair-from-dry-air days.

With a tubular cast on for a nice stretchy edge, this hat works up jiffy quick with worsted weight on oversized (US 10.5) needles. The texture pattern is embarrasingly simple, but looks complex.  Clever shaping maintains the stitch pattern look as you decrease for the crown.

Sample is knit with Berroco Jasper, which I adore for it’s subtle color shifts that make fabulous stripes with no effort on my part!  Katie Jayne is only $3.00 until Friday, January 14th.  Don’t miss it!

After a long morning-turned-afternoon of snow play, there’s two things that my boys require.  Hot Chocolate, in vat quantities. Usually, the second thing is Tuna Noodle Casserole (I have no idea how that became a snow day tradition, but since it’s one of my favorite easy meals, I’m certainly not complaining!)  Since we’ve got an abundance of turkey left (that’s what happens when you procure a 21 pound turkey when you’re only feeding 8 people – I love leftovers!)  So, today’s Christmas {Crafting} is my grandma’s Tuna Casserole, adapted for turkey (in other words, all I did was sub turkey meat for the tuna)  I’m not a gambling gal, but if I were I’d bet that there’s more than a few of you with turkey sitting in the fridge and a few wee folks who don’t want another turkey sandwich.  This is a great way to use it up in a way that your kids will most likely love!

Tuna Turkey Casserole

2 tablespoons butter

3 heaping tablespoons flour

1 cup milk, half and half, or light cream (if you’re feeling decadent!)

1 cup chicken stock (or turkey/veggie stock, or water)

3/4 cup shredded cheese (swiss or cheddar)

2 cups chopped cooked turkey (or 2 can solid white tuna)

1 pound wide egg noodles (or any other pasta you’ve got on hand – we’ve used elbows, penne, rigatoni, rotini, etc)

3-4 cups broccoli (frozen or fresh, doesn’t matter!)

2 t kosher salt

pepper to taste

paprika (about 1 T)

Put water on to boil (for noodles + broccoli) while you prepare a bechamel sauce (really, it’s not hard!) preheat oven to 350 degrees. You’ll add the broccoli to the water once it’s boiling, and cook for 4-5 minutes, then add noodles and cook until the noodles are al dente. Drain and put into a casserole dish.

melt the butter on medium heat in a medium saucepan, then sprinkle the flour in slowly while stirring the entire time (you don’t want the flour to clump)  Continue to stir for a few minutes, until the butter and flour are lightly browned.  Add about a 1/4 cup of the milk, stirring continuously.  It will form a gel-like consistency when mixed; continue slowly adding the milk while you stir.   Once all the milk has been added, switch to adding the stock/water in the same manner until it’s incorporated.  Turn the heat down to med-low, and stir frequently until the sauce thickens a bit.  Reserve 1/4 cup of the cheese, and add the rest to the sauce, stirring well to incorporate. remove from heat and stir in the turkey and seasoning.  Pour sauce over the noodles/broccoli, and top with remaining cheese and paprika.  Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, until bubbly and nicely browned on top. Enjoy!

Today’s Pattern is the Picky Pants, in honor of my friend’s shrieking voicemail this morning that she’s (finally!!!) pregnant.  I’ll be knitting up quite a few little pickys for her in the coming months!

There’s over 1600 Picky Pants projects on Ravelry, so go take a peek for some fabulous inspiration. Normally $12, the Picky Pants are discounted 50% today, so they’re a steal at $6!

In the wax paper wrappers are some to-die-for yummy salted caramels.  They’re rich, chewy, gooey little lovelies – and dead easy to make.  Seriously. You can whip up a batch in less than 10 minutes.  You know you wanna make some Salted Caramels for yourself.  The other treats are Buckeyes (which never fail to send my die-hard Penn State fan into fits) and again, embarrasingly easy to make.  the boys and I made about 10 batches of each of these recipes over the past 5 days, and none of us have been reduced to stuttering, rocking-in-the-corner sucking on our thumbs messes (yet – I’ve still got wrapping and knitting to finish, which may push me over the edge.  But still, it won’t have been from these treats!) Pop them in ziploc bags, with some pretty scrap paper toppers tied on with angel or star ornaments, and they’re lovely little gifts that won’t break the bank or your sanity.  (the bird ornaments were from Michael’s, purchased several years ago AFTER christmas.  The stars are salt dough ornaments made two Christmases ago for an ornament exchange I didn’t make it to because I was ill)

These are great last-minute gifts to put together, that don’t feel like last minute gifts.  What are your go-to quick-and-dirty I need a bunch of gifts for tomorrow ideas?

White Chicken Chili
2-3 cups cooked chicken, cubed or shredded (if we’ve got leftover chicken from a roast, I use that, otherwise I boil 2 boneless breasts and shred it after cooking)
1 bag of great northern beans, soaked and cooked(or 2 big cans of northern beans or other white bean)
1 onion, chopped
1 stick, plus 2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup flour
1 cups milk or half and half
2 cups chicken stock (or 1 can chicken broth)
1 small can green chilies
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
salt & pepper (to taste)

Condiments: sour cream, monterey jack or sharp cheddar, avocado, tomatoes, cilantro or whatever else you fancy

1. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large pot (I use this cast iron dutch oven) over medium-high heat.
2. Add onions, stirring several times to coat with the butter. Allow the onion to cook down until golden, about 10 minutes.
3. Remove onions to a separate plate, and add remaining stick of butter to pot.
4. Once butter is melted, slowly add in flour while constantly whisking (this is making a roux)
5. very slowly whisk in the milk/half and half until the mixture is thick and well blended, then very slowly whisk in the stock
6. add in the onions, chicken, green chilies and spices
7. reduce the heat to med-low and let simmer for 20-30 minutes (or reduce to low and let it simmer for an hour or so)

Serve with condiments and enjoy!

I’m pretty sure I’ve written about menu planning before, but I’m going to try to get better about posting my menu here weekly, because a few folks have asked how and what I manage to feed the tribe each week

Monday: braised pork chops with peach cinnamon chutney, red cabbage and mashed sweet potatoes
Tuesday: Choco-Chili with cornbread
Wednesday: dinner at church
Thursday: Honey Baked Chicken Legs, homemade cole slaw and steamed carrots
Friday: homemade pizza or calzones (whichever the boys want when I start to prep dinner)
Saturday: beef brisket, oven fried potatoes and garlic broccoli
Sunday: Tacos