St Patrick's Day Feast

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This year for St. Paddy's Day, I decided to see if I could come up with a less greasy meal.  It turned out great.  The kids ate **ALL** of the cabbage and raved about the meat.  In addition, we had Irish "Champ" (a sort of mashed potatoes) and Irish Soda Bread.  And, of course, we learned a bit of history.

Baked Corned Beef

BAKED CORNED BEEF
10 min prep, 2 hours baking

1 pkg (about 5 lbs) Corned Beef
Black Pepper
1/4 C Honey
1/4 C Brown Sugar
10-12 Whole Cloves
Foil

Drain corned beef & discard the spices that came with it.  Place meat fat-side up on a large piece of foil.  On top of  beef:  sprinkle black pepper "to taste",  spread with honey, then sprinkle brown sugar on top.  Insert cloves evenly, every couple of inches.  Since corned beef is already salty, you don't need to add any addition salt.

Wrap beef in foil, leaving a bit of room at the top.  Place on a shallow baking pan.  Bake 350 for about 1 hr 50 minutes.  For the last 10 minutes, fold top of foil back & broil or cook on 450 degrees to brown the top of the meat.

Use a larger cut of meat than you need.  You can use the leftover for Ruben Sandwiches or Corned Beef Hash.  Yum!

INTERESTING HISTORY:  Cows were a status symbol in Ireland.  So, the Irish tended to eat sheep & pig more than beef.  Corned beef is an Irish-American food though.  Probably because beef was a more economical choice than pig here.
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SAUTED CABBAGE & ONIONS

2-4 Tbsp bacon drippings or olive oil
1 large sweet onion, sliced
2 cloved garlic minced (I use the pre-cut ones that come in a bottle)
1 small head cabbage, sliced
Salt & Pepper



Heat oil or bacon drippings over med-high heat.  Add onions & saute until they are just beginning to brown.  Add garlic, cook for two minutes more.  Add in 1/2 of the cabbage.  Let it sit on the bottom of the pan & brown.  You need the skillet to be hot enough to brown the cabbage quickly without burning it.  Stir & add the rest of the cabbage.  Brown, then salt & pepper to taste.  I didn't salt this too much, since we were eating it with the corned beef.

INTERESTING HISTORY:  When an Irish recipe calls for "rashers", you can substitute bacon.  Rashers are like bacon, but with very little fat.
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"Champ"

CHAMP

2-3 lbs potatoes,cut into 2" cubes
1 bunch green onions, sliced incl. greens
1 C milk
2 tsp salt
4 Tbsp butter

Boil potatoes until tender.  Simmer green onions in milk for 5 minutes.  Don't boil.  Drain potatoes, then mash (or whip) them.  Stir in milk, salt & butter.

INTERESTING HISTORY:  Potatoes became a staple in Ireland due to severe poverty and famine.  I usually peel my potatoes when I'm going to mash them.  However, the peels have valuable vitamins and fiber.  The vitamin C found in the peels can help prevent scurvy.  (Not much of a problem in our society today.)
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 IRISH SODA BREAD
10 minutes prep.  40 minutes baking.

Irish Soda Bread makes up & tastes a lot like biscuits.  Good with butter & jelly.  Don't let the lengthy instructions keep you from trying this.  It's really easy & pretty quick.

3 1/2 C flour 
1 tsp sugar (optional)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 C buttermilk (OR 1/2 tsp lemon juice and 1 C milk)


Mix the dry ingredients well.  You want the baking soda well distributed.  Stir in the buttermilk.  (I rarely have buttermilk around & never think to buy it.  You can substitute by mixing 1 C milk with 1/2 tsp lemon juice or vinegar & letting it sit 15 minutes.  The flavor is a bit different, but not an issue.)  


You want the dough to be the consistency of biscuit dough - sort of stringy and thick.  However, you may need to add a bit more milk than one cup depending on the humidity, your flour, etc.  You can add just plain milk if needed.  


Once mixed, kneed it once or twice by hand.  It really doesn't need much. The reaction between the soda and acid starts right away, so you don't want to fuss around with this.  


Shape into a ball.  Take a sharp knife and cut half way down to make a cross shape in the bread.  Bake.


There are several ways to bake Irish Soda bread.  Check out Peters-Mums-Soda-Bread-Recipe for lots of ideas & more information.  It's a great site.  I chose to bake mine in a small dutch oven, but it can be pan cooked, baked on a stone or even on a cookie sheet.  


To bake in a dutch oven.  Pre-heat dutch oven at 475-500 degrees.  Flour the dutch oven.  Plop bread into it.  Replace lid & put into oven.  Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 375.  Bake for another 10 minutes, then remove the lid.  Bake for 20 more minutes.  Remove from oven & remove from dutch oven.  


For a crisp crust, let sit on a cooling rack.  For softer crust, wrap in a dishtowel.


INTERESTING HISTORY:  In most areas, fuel was limited so bread was baked in a community oven.  However, in Ireland, fuel was much easier to obtain. Most people could make their own bread.  

YUM! Philly Cooking Cream - a must try

You HAVE to try this stuff!  It's so good.  I tried it because I hosted a "House Party" to promote it.  After trying it, I'm going to keep buying it.  I made two different main courses for my "House Party."  First was chicken enchiladas.  Second was a creamy Alfredo-like pasta dish.  Both were super duper easy and quickly devoured.

The cooking creme made is easy to throw together fast meals with a minimum of ingredients.  In addition, I think the Santa Fe flavor would be a great chip dip by itself or with some grated cheddar cheese stirred into it.  I also want to try the Santa Fe flavor as a layer in a seven-layer Mexican dip.  Yum, yum, yum.

ENCHILADAS
My family loves enchiladas, but they are a pain to make, so I don't do it very often.  This recipe is zippy-fast and easy.   It doesn't look like it'll serve a lot, but, with the addition of a nutritious green salad, and some corn or refried beans, it will fully feed my family of seven.  You can have this done in just over 30 minutes. We will be eating enchiladas more often now!

Saute one diced onion in a bit of oil or butter.
Add about 3 C of cooked chopped chicken (2 cans of "church" cannery chicken, 5 "tuna" sized cans,  1 lb pre-cooked frozen diced chicken...)
Stir in 3/4 container of Philly Santa Fe Cooking Creme
and 1 can of diced tomatoes, drained
Add 1/2 C grated Mexican cheese

Spoon this mix into 8 tortillas, roll each up and place into a 13x9 baking dish (sprayed w/ PAM.)
Top with remaining cooking creme.

Bake covered for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees or until heated through.

Garnish with fresh diced tomatoes & green onions, if desired.
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CREAMY BACON FETTUCCINE

You can never go wrong with bacon.  This has a flavor similar to Alfredo, but it's richer & creamier.  I liked it better than Alfredo.  The following recipe will feed eight as a one-pot meal.  It even has a vegi in it, and takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish.  It would take less time if you already had the bacon cooked.  I'm definitely making this again.

Start water boiling for 1 lb fettuccine.  Cook fettuccine, drain.
Meanwhile, cook 1 package bacon (cut into 1/2 inch pieces) until crisp.  Remove bacon from skillet with slotted spoon, then drain off all but about 2 Tbsp of drippings.
Saute 1 chopped red onion in the drippings, until crisp-tender.  (You want this to still have a touch of crunch and you want to preserve some of the red color.)
Add 2 containers Philly Italian Cheese & Herb Cooking Creme,
and 1 C milk,
and 2 C frozen peas.
Then cook and stir about 3 minutes, until warm.
Stir in the cooked fettuccine, and the cooked bacon.

Serve!

Quick tip:  If I'm cooking bacon anyway, I routinely cook up more than I need.  I recently learned to cook it in the oven.  It broils quickly and turns out nice and crisp with a minimum of effort or clean up on my part.  Then I toss the extra bacon into the freezer.  I also keep a pint jar of bacon drippings in the fridge.  Drippings are a great flavoring when cooking eggs in particular.  Just add a smidge to your non-stick skillet or a bit more to any other pan.  This recipe would take next to no time to make using pre-cooked bacon & drippings.

Homeschool Book Review ~ Listening to Crickets, A Story about Rachel Carson by Candice F. Ransom

I didn't much like the prior book I reviewed about Rachel Carson.  But, I liked this one.  Listening to Crickets is an easy read that my girls enjoyed listening to.  The black and white illustrations helped keep their interest.

With a lexile score of 930, a seventh grader should be able to read it comfortably by herself.  However, I think this book is more suited to be read aloud to elementary children.

I recommend this book to anyone who is trying to meet the Washington State First Grade objective of learning about Rachel Carson.  It is available through the Bellingham Public Library, as soon as I return it later this week.

Radiological Emergencies

There's lots of information already available about radiological emergencies.  However, in light of the current issues in Japan, I'm going to provide a few links and a bit of information.

I doubt we'll need to worry too much, but I'm of the opinion, that "knowledge is power" and that it's better to be prepared.  Most of the preparing you do is fairly general and won't be wasted.

• Storing some extra food is useful if there's a heavy snow that makes it hard to get to the store or if temporarily unemployed.  
• A bit of stored water can be used if your area is under a "boil order", which happens occasionally, or if the water is out on your street during water repairs.
• Planning on a way to stay warm has you ready next time the power goes out.  

These are all fairly simple ways to help your family be safe and comfortable during even a minor crisis.  

So, on to radiological emergencies.  First remember that your safety is increased as time, distance and shielding from the source of radiation is increased.  Much of the radiation that we could be exposed to has a fairly short half-life, which means that the radiation danger goes away quickly.  Also, the further you are from the radiologic event, the less you'll be exposed.  And, the more you can shield yourself & your family from the radiation, the better off you are.  

Start with this first link which helps explain the difference between radiation exposure and contamination.  It's important to understand the difference.  http://www.bt.cdc.gov/radiation/contamination.asp

Next, learn about Potasium Iodine (KI) at http://www.bt.cdc.gov/radiation/ki.asp  It only helps in certain situations.  Too much can be harmful; the wrong types can be fatal.  Don't take it unless you are advised to by authorities.  

Finally, read about sheltering.  I'm a little hesitant to post this particular link since it is a tad alarmist.  However, I like that it shows simple ways you can shelter your family without building a 1950's bunker in your backyard.  I particularly like the idea of putting shielding (bags of flour, pillowcases of dirt, mattresses...) on top of and around a stair case to use as a shelter.   http://www.ki4u.com/guide.htm  

My last word on this?  Don't stress.  Just make some simple plans and take some basic steps and you will feel safer.  That feeling of preparedness is good for your health.  :-)

Recipe: Fish Taco

They sound weird, but fish tacos are the best!  If you've never tried one, you really need to.  My whole family gobbled this up and I'm drooling just thinking about it.

Sauce
1/2 C Sour Cream
1/2 C Mayo (not salad dressing)
1/2 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp Coriander
1/2 tsp Dillweed
1/2 tsp Oregano
1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning (you could substitute red pepper, plain chipotle seasoning,  another spicy flavoring, or a finely diced hot pepper of your choice.  As I make the sauce, it is not spicy because I'm a fire wimp.)
1/2 tsp Capers, finely minced (these are optional, but add depth to the flavor)
1-2 Tbsp fresh Cilantro, finely chopped
1 Lime

Whisk all the ingredients, except the lime, together.  Add juice from the lime until you have the consistency of an easy-to-pour salad dressing.  Refrigerate for at least one hour, overnight is better.  (Lime tip:  roll the lime around on the counter under your palm until it gets soft.  You are trying to break up the "innards."  Then toss the lime into the microwave for 15-20 seconds.  You'll get a lot more juice this way.  You can use this technique with any citrus.)

Slaw Filling
Toss together:
1/2 head Cabbage, very finely cut (you can use a bag of pre-cut coleslaw if you want.)
4 Green Onions, sliced, including whites & greens
3 Carrots, shredded
1 bunch Cilantro, less what you used in the sauce
1 Red or Yellow Pepper, finely diced

Fish
Here's the embarrassing part; I used frozen fish sticks because they are easy to make &  they were 50% off at Albertsons.  Any fish that you like will work.  A white fish grilled on the BBQ with a bit of butter & lemon pepper would be tasty.

Serve by adding a generous portion of the slaw, a bit of fish & sauce to taste in a white corn tortilla.  I'm not usually a fan of the texture of corn tortillas, but it's just right with these tacos.  We use the smaller sized ones.

Book Review: Lemon Tart

Lemon Tart is a sweet little mystery for fans of the "cozy" sub-genre of mysteries.  Widowed Sadie Hoffmiller is a baking, cooking, and housekeeping whiz who takes a young, single mom under her wing.  Sadie is also a bit of a neighborhood busybody, a like-able one, but a busybody none-the-less.  When the young mother is found dead & her toddler son missing,  Sadie can't help but run into clues.  Along the way, Sadie learns more about her fiancée, her family, and the neighborhood cops than she wants to know.

In the tradition of good "cozies", this story is a light read.  There's a bit of romance, some good cooking (along with recipes), and some mild tension.  While published by Deseret Book, there is no mention of religion, faith or God.  Lemon Tart should appeal to any "cozy" fan, not just LDS readers.

I appreciate that there is no profanity, no sex scenes, and no gore.  An extra-marital affair plays an important role in the plot, but the characters express regret and admit it was a mistake.  Sadie isn't perfect.  She makes mistakes, but also tries to make amends.  This is a book that even a conservative Mom can safely share with her teen-aged daughter without worry.

Homeschool Schedule

I've been asked about our homeschool schedule.

First, let me say that there are almost as many homeschool schedules as there are homeschool families.  No one way is the right way.  That's one of the joys of homeschooling; you can adjust and customize to meet your and your kids needs.

Second, I subscribe to the idea that public school kids get less than one and half hour of new learning every day. The rest of the day is taken up with lunch, standing in line, waiting on others, getting ready, moving from one area to another, cleaning up, problem kids, recess....  There really is research that shows this.  So, we only average about two hours of book work a day.  We meet the rest of  the minimum education hours (plus some!) required by state law, through more experiential, hands on, and creative learning.  (As an aside, I'm not knocking school teachers.  They do so much with so little.  I have a huge advantage in that I'm tutoring only five children, who I know very, very well and I don't get a new crop of kids each year.)

Third, I have five kids ages 13, 10, 7, 4, & baby.  Because of their various ages, disabilities and learning styles, they each have different needs and learn differently.  Each is unique and the range of what we are learning is broad.  That means that I'm not able to easily sit them all down to do a lesson together.

Fourth, I don't believe that I am teaching them.  They are learning.  I just facilitate and help.  The best teacher can't force learning into a child's head.  I try to provide a broad range of supplies, books, equipment and other learning helps. (And a LOT of duct tape.)

So, with those four points in mind, I'll explain our schedule:  We don't have one.  No, that's not really true.  But, it's flexible and fluid.  Each child's schedule is somewhat different.

The baby, obviously, doesn't do any special homework.  :-)  He just does what babies do.

My four year old, goes one day a week to a special-education pre-school through our local school district.  While there she gets speech therapy.  At home, she is learning to read using "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons."  We also use several basic pre-school and Kindergarten type work books.  She does homework in the morning while her seven year old sister does.

Sometimes one of her big sisters will help her.  This is a good way for the older girls to review things they learned.  And, I can observe what the older girls have mastered.

Cute four-year-old daughter doesn't do homework every day and she probably only does a half hour when she does.  I don't force it when she isn't interested.  But, I do find ways to work with her at other times.  We count things.  We make rhyming words.  We find letters on milk cartons and cereal boxes.  We talk about why leaves are falling off our trees.

Pre-schoolers can be the hardest or the easiest to teach.  They are naturally curious about everything.  They require a lot of one-on-one if they are doing book work.  But, when you just slide teaching into everyday life, it's pretty easy & a lot of fun.

My 7 year old likes to get up, eat & start homework because she knows that she can't play Wii or Webkinz until homework is done.  She's in first grade and still requires a lot of help.  Most kids do until they can read independently.  She does Math-U-See, which is a video driven program.  And she is learning to read with a mix of Headsprout (online) and "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons."  She has eye tracking problems, so I don't push her finish a complete lesson at a sitting.  Sometimes, she just can't.  As long as she is making progress, I'm happy.

My 10 year old is lazy.  She also is bright with an above average IQ, but several learning problems including dyslexia.  And, she has been diagnosed with high-functioning autism.  When she learns something, she learns it.  A lot of repetition just irritates her.  So, while her older sister uses Saxon Math, which has *lots* of repetition, this daughter uses Math-U-See.  MUS uses lots of manipulatives and while it does do some repetition, there isn't as much of it.  There's just enough repetition to keep the idea fresh, without boring her.  

Anyway, her schedule is to avoid doing homework as long as she can.  She needs me to help her quite a bit.  I will read & write for her while she does the thinking work.  She usually does her homework in the afternoon when the two smaller girls are done.  A lot of extra noise bothers her.

My 13 year old knows what she needs to accomplish each day.  She's pretty self motivated and does what she's supposed to.  She tends to spread her homework out all day long.  She also does quite a bit more "bookwork" than the younger ones.  Some of this is because of her learning style.  But, a lot of it is simply because she's older and in middle school.

Often, she waits until evening to do Latin after the "littles" are in bed & it's quieter.  She doesn't want people to know that she likes homework, because that makes her "weirder than [she] already [is]."  I'll catch her through out the day doing odd projects, like building a catapult.

A few tips.  1)  Most text books spend part of the time reviewing material that was supposed to be learned the year before, but forgotten over the summer.  We don't take summers off.  And my kids don't tend to finish a text at the end of the year.  So, I've let my kids "test" out of some work and skip initial chapters.  This is especially true of math.  2)  I use WA state standards to make sure we cover everything we need to.  We actually learn lots more.  I think it's good to let kids follow their interests when they are interested.  3)  Don't stress too much.  Some times it takes a while for a new topic to get through.  Try another tact, if one doesn't work well.  Sometimes, you need to back off for a while.  Eventually the learning will happen.  :-)

Anyway, I know it's not really a lot of help, but it is what we do.  Good luck with whatever your educational journey includes.